8-Year-Old Dies After Drowning During School Field Trip In Hennepin County

MAPLE PLAIN, MN — An 8-year-old boy has died following a drowning incident Thursday at Baker Park Reserve’s South Beach swimming area on Lake Independence in Hennepin County, officials said.

Karmon Conneh, of Brooklyn Center, was on a supervised school field trip when a teacher discovered him in about three feet of water, according to the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office. The teacher immediately called 911.

Deputies with the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Water Patrol and other emergency personnel responded to the scene.

First responders administered CPR before transporting the boy to North Memorial Hospital in Robbinsdale.

He was later transferred to Children’s Minnesota Hospital in Minneapolis, where he died Friday night, according to the Hennepin County Medical Examiner.

The cause of death was complications from anoxic encephalopathy due to a resuscitated cardiac arrest caused by freshwater drowning, officials said. His death was ruled accidental.

"This is a parent’s nightmare, and our hearts are breaking for the family, as well as the teachers and kids who were on the field trip," Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Megan Larson told Patch. "This hits close to home for many of us and we are keeping the child, their loved ones, and everyone impacted in our thoughts."

The Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office is leading the investigation, with assistance from the Three Rivers Park District Public Safety Department and local police.