DAYTON
— A 2-year-old boy was taken to Dayton Children's Hospital after he fell in to the Great Miami River at Island MetroPark Saturday afternoon.
The child fell in to the water near the Helena Street bridge park area.
Montgomery County Regional Dispatch confirmed he was taken to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
Tabatha Davis, who witnessed the incident and called 911, said there is nothing there to keep children from running into the water.
In the 911 call, she states it initially seemed as if the child wasn't breathing, but after CPR was performed by his parents, he threw up the water.
"He ran over there so fast, in the blink of an eye," said Davis. "There is no blockage to the water and I think they really need to do something about that."
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Davis was there with her granddaughter, and gave the child a piece of candy when he approached her.
Davis said he and his mother went to a picnic table near the water and ate the candy, then she looked up and he was gone.
"I heard her scream, 'Where's my baby?' and I looked up and he was in the water," said Davis.
Briana Greenwood, another witness, wrote a letter to park officials making them aware of her safety concerns.
"My two concerns here are the safety of the parks despite the posted warnings, and the availability of park rangers in case of an emergency. Thankfully, the park was full of families and parents so we were able to dial 911 as instructed on the Metro Parks website, but I would like for there to be posts with buttons that people can push throughout the trails and near playground areas," Greenwood states in the letter.
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"I was scared, horrified and worried for this family," wrote Greenwood.
Greenwood said she will petition for a "strong sensible fence" to be put in to block the water ways.
Greenwood was at the park with her son when she assisted the child's parents in looking for him.
"This simple precaution could save many lives of the thousands of children and families that enjoy the MetroParks," wrote Greenwood. "I ask this not only for the safety of my own child, but the safety of others' children."
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