10 lifeguards on hand when girl drowned at Hersheypark wave pool

Ten lifeguards were watching the wave pool at Hersheypark when a 9-year-old girl drowned, officials said.

A spokesperson for the theme park confirmed the incident occurred at the wave pool within the Boardwalk at Hersheypark, on Thursday, as reported by NBC10 Philadelphia. At the time of Sophia Subedi’s death, the spokesperson said there were 100 trained and certified lifeguards at work on the boardwalk — with 10 of them dedicated to watching the wave pool.

The Dauphin County coroner’s office on Monday night said Sophia’s death was accidental.

“The Shores” is a wave pool at the park containing 378,000 gallons of water that goes into periods of waves every 10 minutes, as reported by TribLive.

Hershey Entertainment & Resorts Company CEO John Lawn said that the lifeguards and first responders attempted to perform lifesaving efforts on the child, before she was transported to Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead, NBC10 said.

“It is with deep sorrow and heavy hearts that we confirm the tragic passing of Sophia Subedi,” said a family representative in a statement, as reported by WGAL8. “A bright, kind, and loving young girl, Sophia brought joy and light to everyone who knew her. Her sudden loss has left our entire community in grief.”

A message from our CEO pic.twitter.com/tiuzM3SfzA

— Hersheypark (@Hersheypark) July 25, 2025

She was set to start fourth grade at North Side Elementary in the Central Dauphin School District. Her funeral will be held Wednesday at Jesse H. Geigle Funeral Home, and a GoFundMe has been set up to support her family, who described her as kind and compassionate.

According to the family representative statement, Subedi was born in 2016 in Columbus, Ohio. She moved to Harrisburg in 2022 and had been living with her family since. Subedi had recently graduated from third grade at North Side Elementary School in the Central Dauphin School District and was about to start fourth grade.