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DELAND -- Elijah Eckhardt, the 2-year-old boy resuscitated by paramedics after being pulled from his grandparents' pool last night by his 10-year-old brother died this morning at an Orlando hospital, a Volusia County Sheriff's spokesman said.
"Medical personnel were able to resuscitate Elijah, but he was on life support and in critical condition at the time he was airlifted Saturday night to Florida Hospital in Orlando," Sheriff's spokesman Gary Davidson said. "He was pronounced dead at 10:46 a.m. Sunday morning at the hospital."
The father of the victim was with the child and other siblings earlier in the day on Saturday. He put Elijah down for a nap at about 2:30 p.m., and then after the mother returned home, the father left for an appointment, Davidson said he was informed by investigators.
"Shortly before 5 p.m., the mother was about to start dinner preparations and went to wake up Elijah, at which time she noticed he was gone," Davidson said. "The mother and siblings immediately started searching for the boy around the family compound, which is a large plot of land with four home sites where other family members, including the grandparents, live."
A 10-year-old brother found Elijah in their grandparents’ swimming pool and removed him from the water. It’s unknown how long the child was in the pool, Davidson said.
"Nothing suspicious has been observed in the investigation and the Sheriff’s Office is treating the death as accidental," the Sheriff's spokesman added.