A six-year-old girl who was found unresponsive in a swimming pool in Subligna on Saturday evening has passed away at Scottish Rite Children’s Hospital in Atlanta and Chattooga County Sheriff Mark Schrader says that the investigation continues into the child’s death.

Sheriff Schrader told WZQZ News on Tuesday evening that the tragic incident happened while the child’s parents were working and the girl along with her siblings, age four and eight, were left with a babysitter.

The sheriff says that the children were with a twenty-five-year-old babysitter while their parents were working in a nearby chicken house, gathering eggs.  Investigators with the sheriff’s office said that the sitter was on the back porch of the mobile home where the family lives and the children were playing outside.  At some point, the children wandered over to a neighbor’s house where there is an in-ground swimming pool.  The neighbor’s house is located about 100 yards from where the babysitter was sitting on the back deck, according to Sheriff Schrader.  The neighbor’s were not at home at the time.  At some point, the six-year-old girl fell into the pool.

The siblings of the little girl ran back to tell the babysitter who came to the pool and tried to pull the little girl to safety.  The babysitter’s first attempt to retrieve the girl from the pool was unsuccessful and after attempting to rescue the girl the first time, the babysitter called 911.  The babysitter then reentered the pool and was able to pull the little girl from the deep end of the pool.  Gore Firefighters were the first to arrive on the scene and began administering CPR to the child, who was unresponsive at the time.

The girl was transported by Redmond EMS first to a Rome hospital and then to Scottish Rite in Atlanta.  The girl, identified as Rebecca “Grace” Stephens, passed away on Sunday.  Funeral arrangements are incomplete, but will be announced by Mason Funeral Home in Summerville.

Sheriff Schrader told WZQZ News that the investigation into the tragic incident continues at this time.