A 7-year-old boy who died while swimming in a North Miami pool was laid to rest Friday.
Police said the boy may have been electrocuted by a light that sent charges through the water.
Calder Sloan died Sunday after he was shocked as he swam through the pool, police said. An officer attempted CPR before fire rescue transported the boy to Jackson Memorial Hospital where he later died.
Friends and family gathered at a public memorial in Miami Beach to honor the life of Calder Sloan.
"He was a superhero. As he grew up, he amazed us with his atheltic ability," Chris Sloan, the boy's father said at the memorial service.
The boy was swimming with his brothers, ages 5 and 22, under the watch of his nanny when the older brother first felt a shock and urged the others to get out of the pool, The Miami Herald reported. Calder apparently did not hear and was jolted out of the water.
A neighbor who performed CPR on the child, Fabian Pesantes, told NBC 6 he was also shocked by the water.
"The minute I saw him, I just started doing what I know how to do and I started performing CPR on him," Pesantes said. "I cleared the vomit and water out of his mouth and when I was cleaning my mouth I stuck my hand in the pool. When I stuck my hand in the pool, I got shocked."
While police are still investigating the cause of the electrocution, the family suspects a malfunctioning pool light may have been to blame. A contractor was hired to fix the light after it stopped turning on about nine months ago, according to the boy's father, and electricians told the boy's uncle that a problem with the light switch suggested the power was going directly to the pool instead of being diverted from it, The Herald reported. The steel surrounding the light is now rusted and burned, according to the paper.
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A fund has been set up at Sloan's school to establish a foundation in his honor. Click here to donate.
