A Texas community is grieving after three young brothers died in a heartbreaking accident during the brutal winter storm that swept across much of the U.S. in late January. The boys — ages 6, 8, and 9 — fell through the ice on a private pond north of Bonham, Texas, while playing outside on January 26th. Their mother rushed into the freezing water to try to save them, but the ice kept breaking beneath her and the boys slipped below the surface.[/caption]

“They were just screaming, telling me to help them,” their mother, Cheyenne Hangaman, told the Associated Press. “And I watched all of them struggle, struggle to stay above the water. I watched all of them fight.”

Authorities say the boys were identified as Howard (6), Kaleb (8), and EJ (9). According to the Fannin County Sheriff’s Office, the two older boys were pulled from the water by first responders and a neighbor and transported to a nearby hospital before dying from their injuries. The youngest boy did not resurface at first and was later recovered after an extensive search of the pond.

Hangaman said the tragedy unfolded within moments. The family had been staying at a friend’s house across the street from the pond, and she had warned the children not to go near the water. But on Monday afternoon, her youngest daughter ran in to tell her that her brothers were in the pond.

“I ran across as much ice as I could to get to them and eventually ended up falling in myself,” she said. She tried to lift each child onto the ice, but “the ice just kept breaking every time I would sit him up there. I would just keep trying to go to each one of them trying to help them and it was only me, like I couldn’t help them all by myself.”

Hangaman later told a local news outlet that the cold was so intense she could barely move. “As soon as I jumped in, I locked up. I couldn’t do anything,” she said. A neighbor eventually managed to pull her to safety using a rope. “I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t move,” she said. “By that time I knew that my kids were already gone. So I just had to try to fight for my life at that point.”

The boys attended school in the Bonham Independent School District, which closed this week due to the dangerous winter weather. In a letter to parents, the superintendent called the loss “unimaginable,” adding, “our thoughts are with the family, friends, and all who knew and loved these children.”

A GoFundMe created for the family has raised tens of thousands of dollars as the community rallies around them. Hangaman described her sons as full of joy, saying, “You couldn’t really stop their bubbliness.”

More than 30 deaths nationwide have been linked to the storm as dangerously cold temperatures continue across multiple states. As loved ones mourn three young boys taken far too soon, many are asking for prayers — for their mother, for their siblings, and for a hurting community.

Lord, we lift up this family to You in their unimaginable grief. Bring comfort to their mother, peace to their siblings, and strength to their community. Surround them with people who will hold them, pray for them, and walk with them through the long journey of healing. We trust that You hold these precious boys in Your arms. In Jesus’ name, Amen.