Family praises officer for saving 4-year-old boy with autism from pond in Kansas

TOPEKA, Kan. -- The mother of a 4-year-old boy with autism says she believes a police officer who rescued her son from a Topeka, Kansas, pond was sent by God.

Officer Aaron Bulmer rescued Elijah Hamby from a Central Park pond Sunday. Bulmer was on another call when he saw Elijah walking alone in the park and then lost sight of him. He got out of his car and saw Elijah in the pond, gasping for air.

Video from a bodycam worn by Bulmer shows the officer jumping into the pond, pulling the boy out. You can watch the entire rescue by watching the video above.

Emergency crews arrived at the scene and took the child to a local hospital to be checked out, reports CBS affiliate WIBW-TV in Topeka. The kid was then reunited with a parent who had been out searching for them at the time, the station added.

Elijah's mother, Jaclyn, said Wednesday her son unlocked a back door while his father was in the bathroom and she was at work.

The Topeka Capital-Journal reports Elijah has fully recovered.

Police noted they later learned the child had been diagnosed with autism, adding that many children with autism are drawn to water, WIBW reports.