Wellesley Police will Brief Selectmen on Morses Pond Drowning

At Monday night's meeting of the Wellesley Board of Selectmen, Police Chief Terrence Cunningham will brief selectmen on the results of their investigation, and of a safety review currently underway at the pond. 

In response to the death, Wellesley Police investigated all leads at the scene--although they did not suspect foul play. According to an update from the Police Department, the town has taken on an independent aquatics safety contractor to review Morses Pond and its procedures. 

According to the update, the following aspects are included in the review: 

• Policies and procedures relevant to the operation of the beach, including the Emergency Action Plan (EAP) 
• Staff qualifications, job responsibilities and ongoing training programs 
• Staffing patterns and placement of staff 
• Site evaluation and inspection of beach infrastructure including safety/rescue equipment

The pond had been open for two weeks when a. The pond was fully staffed at the time of the incident, and officers were on scene within minutes of the initial 911 call, according to a post on the Police website

Cunningham told the Board at a June 3 meeting that, "Everyone on scene did what they were trained to do. It was a very unfortunate accident."

Just before 6 p.m. on June 1, crews from Wellesley Police and Fire Departments scoured Morses Pond for a 10-year-old boy who had gone missing. The boy was found in the water about an hour later, taken to Newton-Wellesley Hospital, and died at the hospital.

See the Police Chief's open letter regarding the Morses Pond drowning. 

The public is invited to attend the briefing, which will take place during the 7 p.m. Board of Selectmen at Town Hall tonight. The meeting will also be  broadcast on the Wellesley Channel and online on the Wellesley Media website.