ALTOONA, Iowa — The Jaramillo family is still in Des Moines Friday, waiting for 16-year-old David to recover after a July 3 accident at Adventureland killed his little brother, 11-year-old Michael Jaramillo.
It's been almost a week since their boat on the Raging River overturned.
"The more I think about it, it's not an accident. It's a tragedy," said Christian Shields, the family's pastor. "Somebody is to blame for this, and certainly not the Jaramillos. And it's not Michael who gave his life to Jesus on the Fourth of July."
The family will hold a funeral and memorial for Michael in Des Moines next week. Shields says Michael was a fun, caring child loved by so many.
"The Jaramillos are very proud of him," Shields said. "And they are assured that he is in heaven for the rest of his days. Where there's no more sorrow, no more pain, no more weeping."
An incident report from Altoona Fire Department revealed new details about the issues first responders faced at the scene.
An ambulance was dispatched to Adventureland shortly after 7:30 p.m. Saturday, July 3 after a raft was overturned with six people inside of it. Among those people was 11-year-old Michael.
When the first crew arrived at one of the park gates, it was closed and "appeared to be secured with a heavy chain and lock," according to fire personnel.
The crew called Adventureland security to open the gate for future crews. The first crew reached the river after a "lengthy run to the far east side of the park" over uneven terrain.
When first responders arrived at the river, everyone was out from under the raft and CPR was underway for one of the victims.
"A raft was upside down on the south side on the inside corner in the man-made river," the report reads. "The water was not moving and appeared to be about two feet deep."
The deputy fire chief who responded spoke to multiple park employees in or near Adventure Bay, the water park area, according to the report.
None could direct him to a supervisor, with the deputy writing "none of the Adventureland employees appeared to be aware of what had happened at the Raging River."
Watch the full interview with the Jaramillo family pastor here: