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Tragedy strikes Texas family as three brothers drown
Three young brothers aged six, eight, and nine died after falling through ice on a private pond in Bonham, north Texas, on Monday, authorities confirmed.
How the accident unfolded
The boys were playing near the pond, located about 30 meters (100 feet) from the family's temporary residence, when the incident occurred. The youngest child, six-year-old Howard Doss, attempted to skate on the thin ice and fell through first. His two older brothers, eight-year-old Kaleb and nine-year-old EJ, jumped in to rescue him, according to their mother, Cheyenne Hangaman.
Hangaman, a mother of six, said she rushed to the scene after her daughter alerted her to the emergency. She described seeing the boys struggling in the freezing water, their bodies already in shock from the cold. She attempted to pull them out but the ice kept breaking beneath her.
"There was three of them and only one of me... that's why I couldn't save them," she told CBS News, the BBC's U.S. partner.
Neighbor intervenes as mother struggles
As Hangaman fought to rescue her sons, she too began to struggle in the frigid water. A neighbor, who is also a football coach at the boys' school, heard her screams and rushed to help. Using a horse rope, he pulled her to safety.
"I tried to fight for my kids' life, where I had to watch them struggle and drown and I couldn't help them," Hangaman said.
Emergency response and recovery efforts
Local authorities, including the sheriff's office, responded to the scene. Emergency workers and a neighbor managed to pull the two older boys from the water first. They were transported to a nearby hospital, where they later died. The youngest child, Howard, was recovered after an extensive search of the pond.
The sheriff's office confirmed the deaths but did not release the children's names. Family members identified the boys as Howard, Kaleb, and EJ Doss.
A family's grief and memories
Hangaman remembered her sons as vibrant and full of personality. Nine-year-old EJ aspired to be a football star, eight-year-old Kaleb loved dancing and singing, and six-year-old Howard "liked making people laugh."
"Make sure that you hold your kids tight, always tell them that you love them," she urged other families.
The boys' school expressed its devastation in a letter to families, stating that counselors would be available to support students and staff coping with the loss.
Winter storm compounds tragedy
The deaths occurred amid a deadly winter storm that has swept across the U.S., including Texas, over the past week. The storm has claimed more than 20 lives and left thousands without power.
