3-year-old dies from gunshot wound

A 3-year-old child from the North Slope community of Utqiaġvik has died from a gunshot wound, suffered at a home Sunday evening.

According to David Fauske, Director of Government and External Affairs for the North Slope Borough, police responded to a local residence at approximately 4:51 p.m. Sunday for a report of a three year old with a gunshot wound.

The child was transported to Samuel Simmonds Memorial Hospital by the North Slope Borough Fire Department. The boy died from his injuries while being transported by airplane ambulance to Anchorage, Fauske said.

North Slope Borough officials said "the circumstances of the death are currently under investigation. There is no public safety concern to the residents of Utqiaġvik to report."

The statement from borough officials added, "This news has hit our community hard and we have no names to release at this time and because of the fact the deceased is a minor."

"Keep the slope and this family in your thoughts and prayers. We will release details of the investigation once it’s complete." Fauske wrote in an email to Channel 2 News Monday evening, adding " the death of a child is as bad as it gets, and our community is devastated."