Edmonton Somali community mourns 14-year-old boy who drowned
A service was held Wednesday for the 14-year-old boy who recently drowned at a Whitecourt park.
The prayer for Hassan Mohamed was hosted at Al Rashid Mosque in northwest Edmonton.
Dozens of people from the Edmonton Somali community attended.
"When there is a tragedy like this, adversities like this, we all come together and give each other social support," explained Habiba Mohamud.
"It's very hard to see that he's gone when a few days ago he was just smiling and we were playing basketball together," a friend of eight years, Iqitizi Taylor, told CTV News Edmonton.
"I just don't know how to take it all."
Hassan was at Whitecourt's Rotary Park on Sunday with his family. He entered a pond and never resurfaced.
Divers retrieved his body on Tuesday.
The days-long wait to have Hassan's body recovered – which was delayed until Alberta's volunteer underwater search team became available – has only exacerbated the community's pain, Mohamud said.
"What's really making us feel even so bad about what's happened is the way the incident was handled. You're talking of a child who was in the lake for three days and three nights," she told CTV News Edmonton.
It's hard for Hassan's peers to understand, too.
"Why didn't they help him in the first day?" asked Abdirahman Abdi. "Doesn't make sense to me."
Hassan's family and community are advocating for the Alberta government to fund underwater rescue services under the emergency response umbrella and for more safety features at the park.
With files from CTV News Edmonton's Sean McClune
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
NEW What Canada is doing about the toxic forever chemicals in drinking water
As the United States sets its first national limits on toxic forever chemicals in drinking water, researchers say Canada is lagging when it comes to regulations.
Arrest made, manslaughter charge pending in 2022 death of Calgary toddler
Calgary police have arrested a man and a charge is pending in connection with the death of a toddler in 2022.
Prince William returns to public duties after wife Kate's cancer revelation
Prince William will return to public duties on Thursday for the first time since his wife Kate revealed she was undergoing preventative chemotherapy for cancer.
'A living nightmare': Winnipeg woman sentenced following campaign of harassment against man after online date
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
Where did the gold go? Crime expert weighs in on unfolding Pearson Airport heist investigation
Almost 7,000 bars of pure gold were stolen from Pearson International Airport exactly one year ago during an elaborate heist, but so far only a tiny fraction of that stolen loot has been found.
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
Frustrated farmers are rebelling against EU rules. The far right is stoking the flames
Mainstream political parties failed to act on European farmers' complaints for decades, one farmer says. Now the radical right is stepping in.
'They needed people inside Air Canada:' Police announce arrests in Pearson gold heist
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
House admonishes ArriveCan contractor in rare parliamentary show of power
MPs enacted an extraordinary, rarely used parliamentary power on Wednesday, summonsing an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons where he was admonished publicly and forced to provide answers to the questions MPs said he'd previously evaded.