4-year-old found dead at hotel after falling from 11th-floor balcony, Florida cops say

A 4-year-old died after falling from an 11th-story balcony onto the 3rd floor of a resort, police said.

A customer at the Laketown Wharf Resort in Panama City Beach found the child in the third-floor recreation area at around 6:30 a.m. on Sept. 3, Panama City Beach Police Chief J.R. Talamantez said during a news conference.

The child’s family was vacationing from Georgia at the time, he said. Detectives are still investigating how the child fell from the balcony.

“This is a horrible tragedy,” he said. “You come here on Labor Day weekend with your child and you have to go home without them … There’s no words to explain ... It’s a tragic event. ...

“The only thing we can do is promise to bring as many answers to the family as possible,” he said.

Police are waiting for the medical examiner to determine the cause of death.

A person who answered the phone at Emerald View Resorts, which owns the Laketown Wharf, declined to comment.

Panama City Beach is about 120 miles southwest of Tallahassee and is a popular tourist destination.

This story was originally published September 6, 2022 at 4:27 PM with the headline "4-year-old found dead at hotel after falling from 11th-floor balcony, Florida cops say."