Girl, 9, falls through ice and drowns

A 9-year-old girl drowned in a Thanksgiving tragedy Thursday after she and another child fell through thin ice in the Chicago suburb of Naperville.

Neighbors saw the two children and ran to help, the Daily Herald reported. They pulled an 8-year-old boy to safety but the girl, identified as Maheen Ahmad, slipped under the ice.

By the time firefighters located her, she had been under the ice for at least 15 minutes, police said. She was pronounced dead at Edward Hospital in Naperville.

With temperatures at about freezing, the retention pond was covered with a thin coating of ice.

It was just thick enough that they walked out a couple of steps and fell through, Fire Battalion Chief Edward Veseling said.

The two neighbors waded 10 to 15 feet from shore to get the boy.

The boy was reportedly in good condition Thursday evening. Another child did not fall through the ice.

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