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The parents of a seven-year-old girl who died after a sand hole collapsed ontop of her whilst on a beach holiday have spoken out for the first time.
Sloan Mattingly was playing with her brother, Maddox, 9, as they dug a hole in the sand while at Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, Florida on 20 February.
According to Jason Mattingly, the day had been 'perfect' before descending into 'chaos and horror'.
The hole began to collapse around the siblings, with Maddox being buried up to his chest while Sloan was buried underneath the sand.
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Maddox was pulled out of the hole and a nurse who'd been on beach stayed with him while Therese Mattingly dug for Sloan.
They were eventually recovered and rushed to hospital where Maddox was placed in a stable condition but Sloan sadly lost her life.
Now, as spring break approaches, Therese and Jason have spoken out in order to warn others.
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Speaking to Good Morning America, Therese said: “[How it happened] is kind of the question we have too because we're the kind of people that other parents or family members would roll their eyes at because we're a little overprotective most of the time.”
Describing themselves as 'a little overprotective most of the time', Sloan's mother continued: 'I think of everything. When we go to the beach, we think of water safety. And this never, ever once crossed my mind.
"And course now, looking now, I think ‘of course!’ and so that part's really frustrating.”
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Jason said that everyone in the rescue mission 'tried their hardest', adding: "And unfortunately, it didn't work out in our favor."
Therese described her daughter as a 'beam of light' and that Sloan and her brother were 'built-in best friends'.
She expressed concern for Maddox and believed that he was 'holding a lot in' after the passing of his sister.
Jason said: "I think he'll always be a little different now, but we're willing to do whatever we need to do to make sure he has the help to kind of process this and move forward with Sloan in his heart."
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Since Sloan's passing, the parents have received a huge amount of support, adding that it was 'overwhelming'.
Jason said: "We've read every letter. We really appreciate all the support."
They are now trying to raise awareness around beach safety to prevent other families from experiencing the same tragedy.
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"I don't know what steps to take in order for that to happen - for, you know, signage or lifeguards or patrol," Therese said.
"But hopefully we can make some sort of change from this."
Chris Vincent, mayor of Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, shared his condolences and thanked the family for their work with officials to develop a 'national public safety campaign in Sloan’s memory'.
He added: "We will share it with as many coastal communities as possible to help prevent another unimaginable tragedy.
"We’re also discussing how we monitor our beach, a local Ordinance to ban digging on our beach, and the best way to honor Sloan.”
Kya Buller