'They were just screaming.' Mom unable to save 3 sons who fell through icy pond in Texas

BONHAM, Texas (AP) — Three brothers — ages 6, 8 and 9 — died in Texas during the massive winter storm gripping the U.S. after falling through an icy pond across the street from a house where they were staying, authorities said Tuesday. Their mother said she jumped into the freezing water but wasn’t able to save them.

“They were just screaming, telling me to help them,” Cheyenne Hangaman told The Associated Press. “And I watched all of them struggle, struggle to stay above the water. I watched all of them fight.”

The brothers died on Monday after falling into the private pond north of Bonham, a rural community of about 10,000 people near the Oklahoma border, the Fannin County Sheriff’s Office said. First responders and a neighbor pulled the two older boys from the water and the youngest sibling was recovered after an extensive search of the pond, according to the sheriff.

Hangaman said she and her children had been staying at a friend’s house across the street from the pond, and that she’d warned them to not go near it. But, she said, on Monday her youngest daughter ran to tell her that her brothers were in the water.

“I ran across as much ice as I could to get to them and eventually ended up falling in myself,” said Hangaman, who said the freezing water immediately shocked her body.

“I would grab one, try to put him on ice, but the ice just kept breaking every time I would sit him up there," she said. "I would just keep trying to go to each one of them trying to help them and it was only me, like I couldn’t help them all by myself.”

Hangaman said a man who came to help was able to throw a rope to her to get her out of the pond.

“I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t move," she said. “By that time I knew that my kids were already gone. So I just had to try to fight for my life at that point.”

All three of the boys were in elementary school in the Bonham Independent School District, which had canceled classes Monday because of the frigid weather that has swept across much of the U.S. The school district was also closed Tuesday due to extreme weather conditions, including icy roads and freezing temperatures.

“We are devastated by this unimaginable loss, and our thoughts are with the family, friends, and all who knew and loved these children," Superintendent Lance Hamlin said in a letter to parents.

Hangaman said all three boys were “bubbly.” “You couldn’t really stop their bubbliness,” she said.

On Tuesday, a layer of ice still covered much of the small pond in a wooded area.

More than 40 deaths have been reported in states affected by severe cold.

Associated Press writers Jamie Stengle in Dallas and Kathy McCormack in Concord, New Hampshire, contributed to this report.

Cheyenne Hangaman speaks to The Associated Press about the death of her three sons who drowned in a frozen pond Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026, in Bonham, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

Cheyenne Hangaman shows a photograph of her and her son, EJ, 9, who along with his two brothers Kaleb, 8, and Howard, 6, drowned in a frozen pond Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026, in Bonham, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

Cheyenne Hangaman shows a photograph of her and her son, Howard, 6, who along with his two brothers Kaleb, 8, and EJ, 9, drowned in a frozen pond Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026, in Bonham, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

Cheyenne Hangaman shows a photograph of her and her son, Kaleb, 8, who along with his two brothers Howard, 6, and EJ, 9, drowned in a frozen pond Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026, in Bonham, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

Cheyenne Hangaman speaks to The Associated Press about the death of her three sons who drowned in a frozen pond Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026, in Bonham, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

Ice and snow cover the exterior of a residence near a pond where neighbors say three young boys died after falling into the water, Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026, in Bonham, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

A pond where neighbors say three young boys died after falling into the water is seen Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026, in Bonham, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

A pond where neighbors say three young boys died after falling into the water is seen Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026, in Bonham, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

Ice and snow cover the exterior of a residence near a pond where neighbors say three young boys died after falling into the water, Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026, in Bonham, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

A pond where neighbors say three young boys died after falling into the water is seen Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026, in Bonham, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

NEW YORK (AP) — Some of New York's biggest basketball heroes were second-round draft picks.

Like Jalen Brunson, the guy marching through Manhattan with the Larry O'Brien Trophy in his arms last week during a joyous parade celebration. And Willis Reed, the guy who limped into Game 7 of the NBA Finals to lift the Knicks to their first championship.

So when the NBA draft resumed Wednesday night with the Knicks on the clock with the No. 31 pick, every team had hope of finding someone who can be a key piece of a title team.

They drafted Ohio State guard Bruce Thornton, but had already agreed to trade the rights to the pick to Houston by the time NBA deputy commissioner Mark Tatum announced the selection.

Thornton was given a Knicks hat when his name was announced. He was wearing a Rockets one by the time he arrived for his interviews.

He was just happy to get to the NBA, even if it was in Texas and not with the new champions.

“No state tax, so that's even better,” said Thornton, Ohio State's career scoring leader.

The first round, which began with Washington selecting AJ Dybantsa, finished late Tuesday night.

In a much different NBA with a different draft format, Reed was the No. 8 pick in the 1964 draft, which made him the first pick of the second round. The Hall of Famer went on to lead the Knicks to championships in 1970 and 1973 and was the NBA Finals MVP both times.

Brunson was the No. 33 pick in the 2018 draft, taken early in the second round by the Dallas Mavericks. The Knicks signed him as a free agent in 2022 and the franchise hs been on the rise ever since, culminating with their five-game victory over the San Antonio Spurs earlier this month when Brunson was MVP of the series.

Among the other well-known names taken early in the second round were Richie Saunders, Dybantsa's BYU teammate who was taken at No. 32 by Memphis; Duke's Isaiah Evans, who went undrafted in the first round and was selected at No. 33 with a pick belonging to Minnesota; and Purdue's Braden Smith, the NCAA's career assists leader, who was taken at No. 38 by Chicago.

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/nba

Meleek Thomas, right, poses for a photo with NBA Deputy Commissioner Mark Tatum after being selected by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the second round of the NBA basketball draft Wednesday, June 24, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

Jack Kayil, right, poses for a photo with NBA Deputy Commissioner Mark Tatum after being selected by the Houston Rockets in the second round of the NBA basketball draft Wednesday, June 24, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

Bruce Thornton waves after being selected by the New York Knicks in the second round of the NBA basketball draft Wednesday, June 24, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

Bruce Thornton poses for a photo with NBA Deputy Commissioner Mark Tatum after being selected by the New York Knicks in the second round of the NBA basketball draft Wednesday, June 24, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver speaks during the first round of the NBA basketball draft, Tuesday, June 23, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

in the first round of the NBA basketball draft, Tuesday, June 23, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)