INVERNESS, FL – Two teenage boys who grew up together and were like brothers have both died after a sand tunnel they were digging collapsed and buried them alive in central Florida.
George Watts and Derrick Hubbard, both 14 years old, were excavating a hole at a sandpit near Sportsman’s Park on January 11 when the walls gave way. The location is about 70 miles north of Tampa.
The boys had dug down roughly five feet when the sand suddenly caved in, trapping both of them beneath the heavy material.
Their parents grew concerned when neither boy answered their phones around lunchtime. A search led them to the sandpit, where they discovered the boys’ bicycles and shoes. They immediately called for help.
First responders arrived to find Hubbard without a pulse. He was transported to a hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Watts was located with a faint pulse but wasn’t breathing and remained unconscious. He was airlifted to UF Health Shands in Gainesville in critical condition. Despite medical efforts, he died two days later in the early morning hours.
Friends and family described the boys as lifelong best friends who did everything together. They had just won a championship in the Citrus NFL Flag Football league. Those who knew them remembered them as kind, funny, and adventurous.
One community member reflected that their bond represented the kind of true friendship most adults never get to experience.
Sand hole collapses are deceptively dangerous. The weight of sand can make it nearly impossible for someone to free themselves once buried, and suffocation can occur within minutes if a victim’s airway becomes blocked.
The tragedy has left the tight-knit community in mourning for two young lives cut short.
