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Shaakir Kisubi has been identified as the 12-year-old who drowned at Blue Marsh Lake in Reading on Aug. 19, according to his father Hakim. They had been on a family outing enjoying the end of summer before school starts when the deadly incident happened.
He drowned 40 to 60 feet out into the water near the Dry Brooks Day Use Area beach around 2 p.m. on Saturday. After about an hour of searching water rescue drivers found Shaakir in approximately 6 feet of water, the family said.
He was pronounced deceased at an area hospital. Daily Voice reached out to the Berks County Coroner for additional information but has yet to hear back as of Tuesday, Aug. 22.
Shaakir was from Kampala, Uganda; and moved to America in May 2022, his father explained.
He was a student at Lincoln Lutheran Middle in Lancaster, according to social media.
He is survived by his father Hakim, his 6 and 7-year-old siblings, and his mother who still lives in Uganda.
"This has been hard on myself and my family emotionally and financially," Hakim said "the mother would like to bury her son in Uganda."
A GoFundMe has been launched to help Hakim send his son home for burial in Uganda on Sept. 3. Click here to donate.
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