9-Year-Old Fenton Boy Buried in Sand for 5 Minutes—No Pulse, Then a Miracle

What started as a fun day at Silver Lake State Park in Oceana County quickly turned into a family’s worst nightmare when their 9-year-old boy was buried under the sand.

Spoiler alert: this story has an amazing ending.

While spending time at the beach with his family on the 4th of July, 2025, a 9-year-old Fenton boy was playing and digging in the sand when, at some point, he became accidentally buried beneath it.

9-Year-Old Fenton Boy Buried in Five Feet of Sand

According to CBS News, the boy was buried in about five feet of sand for roughly five minutes. Think about that—completely covered, with no room to breathe, for five full minutes.

By the time first responders arrived, around 30 people were already digging frantically in the last spot the boy had been seen, doing everything they could to get him out. I’d have to imagine it was a chaotic and heartbreaking scene.

Park visitors eventually found the boy and pulled him out to safety, but he was blue and had no pulse. One of the DNR Conservation Officers immediately started CPR, and after about 80 chest compressions, the miracle happened. The boy started breathing again and regained his color.

He was rushed to the hospital for treatment.

A couple of days later, he was released from the hospital and is doing well.

Get our free mobile app

Most stories like this don’t end the way this one did. The fact that this 9-year-old boy survived being buried under five feet of sand for that long is nothing short of a miracle.