Police say 3-year-old dies after NJ campground septic tank fall

CAPE MAY — A three-year-old girl died after accidentally falling into a sewage septic tank at a Cape May campground over the weekend, authorities said.

Cape May prosecutors and Lower Township police said officers were called to the Sun Outdoors Campground in Cape May just before 9:30 p.m. Saturday.

The girl, who had been pulled from the tank by the time emergency responders arrived, was rushed to Cape Regional Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead later that night, authorities said.

Authorities said the Southern Regional Medical Examiner's office conducted an autopsy Sunday, and a ruling on the cause and manner of death are pending the final autopsy report, officials said.

The preliminary investigation hasn't revealed any signs of foul play, and prosecutor Jeffrey Sutherland said that while the investigation continues the death "appears to be an accident at this time."

The girl's name and other details weren't immediately released.

The campground, which offers RV sites, tents and rental properties for vacationers, opened for the season April 1, according to its website, NJ.com reported.

The property had formerly been KOA Cape May, until late last year, according to the facility's Facebook page.

(Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)