Deputies: Toddler crawled through dog door, drowned in backyard pond

NEW SMYRNA BEACH, Fla. (FOX 35 ORLANDO) - The Volusia County Sheriff's Office is investigating after a toddler drowned in a backyard pond.

Deputies responded to a home on Cresthill Lane, off of State Road 415, in New Smyrna Beach at around 6:17 p.m. on Tuesday.

They say the 18-month-old boy was found in the pond by his mother who performed CPR until first responders arrived.

Deputies say it appears the boy left the house through a dog door while his mother was briefly out of the room.

They say when she returned to the room, her son was gone. She searched the home until she found him unresponsive in the pond.

In a statement, Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood said, "Please keep this hurting family in your prayers tonight as they grieve a loss that most of us cannot imagine."