A heroic 11-year-old boy died after he jumped into a frozen Queens pond to save the life of his 12-year-old pal who had fallen through ice, authorities said. 
 
 The deadly accident happened as Anthony Perez, 11, and Juan Umpierrez, 12, were playing in Forest Park at about 4 p.m., officials said. 
 
 “He was on land, he only went out to the ice after the other kid fell through,” a law enforcement source told The Post. 
 
 “He [Perez] was able to push him [Umpierrez] out to safety, but he fell through ice and he couldn’t get out.” 
 
 Rescuers waded through the frigid, chest-high water — whacking a thin layer of ice with their hands — and plucked Perez from the pond, FDNY deputy chief George Healy said. 
 
 But when they got Perez to dry land, he wasn’t breathing — so paramedics performed CPR and rushed the youngster to Jamaica Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. 
 
 “He did help get him out, but he couldn’t save himself,” the law-enforcement source said. 
 
 Perez’s neighbors in Middle Village were shocked and saddened by the news — but not surprised Anthony was so quick to act. 
 
 “I’m going to call him a hero: He’s a hero,” said Carmen Rivera, 51, who lives downstairs from the Perez family. 
 
 “He’s friendly with a lot of people, not shy — he loves to help. He’s a nice little kid.” 
 
 Another neighbor, Leonardo Coraci, 41, also said Perez was well-liked. 
 
 “He’s a good kid, he’s a really great kid . . . it’s a shame something bad had to happen,” said Coraci, who said the pond was once a baseball field. 
 
 “It used to be a baseball field before it was a pond, and they actually had to change it into a stinking pond. They should have kept it as a baseball field. It stinks. 
 
 “He’ll be in my prayers and it’s a shame. He’s a good kid – a really good kid.” 
 
 The FDNY urged parents to warn kids about the dangers of playing on frozen bodies of water in the winter. 
 
 “We implore you: Tell your children, the ice is not safe,” Healy said at a press conference Tuesday. “It’s not gonna support your weight. And there can be tragic consequences.” 
 
 Some of the rescuers fell through the ice themselves while trying to save the boy, he added. 
 
 Two firefighters were also treated for hypothermia. 
 
 “The ice failed underneath them,” Healy said. “They were in chest-deep water. They had to physically break [the ice] with their hands.” 
 
 Days when temperatures reach just above freezing — like on Tuesday when the Big Apple hit 35 degrees — are the most dangerous, Healy said. ||||| "They were in about chest deep water wading through the water. At some point the ice did firm up," Healy said. "They had to physically with their hands break through the ice and chop the ice so they could get to the area they knew that the child would most likely be in, the opening in the ice." ||||| NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – An 11-year-old boy has died after being pulled from an icy pond Tuesday in Queens. 
 
 First responders were called to Forest Park in Woodhaven around 4:05 p.m. where they found the child unconscious in the water. He was rushed to Jamaica Hospital where he was later pronounced dead. 
 
 As CBS2’s Valerie Castro reported, the victim, identified as 11-year-old Anthony Perez McClean, grew up just minutes away from the pond that claimed his life as he tried to rescue a friend. 
 
 “It doesn’t surprise me at all,” neighbor Angela Vargas said. “Because he’s got a good heart that little boy. Not because I know he’s dead. I can’t do nothing about it.” 
 
 We implore parents – make sure your kids know the ice in the city of New York, on these lakes and ponds, is not safe –#FDNY Deputy Chief Healy from the scene at Forest Park #Queens, where a child was removed from the water after falling through the ice https://t.co/hRjTPmZLHn pic.twitter.com/6CD3T9EyaV — FDNY (@FDNY) February 6, 2018 
 
 Police sources told CBS2 McClean and a 12-year-old friend were near the pond when the older friend walked onto the ice and fell through. McClean walked out to save his friend and fell through the ice himself. 
 
 “It appears that the child went out about 50 feet before the ice let go underneath him and was plunged into the water,” FDNY Dep. Chief George Healy said. 
 
 Police sources said the friend ran home for help, but by the time firefighters arrived, McClean was already submerged and unconscious. 
 
 “They had to – physically with their hands – break through the ice and chop through the ice, so that they could get to the area where they knew the child would most likely be in by the opening in the ice,” said Healy. “They had to go underneath to get the child and remove him.” 
 
 Despite CPR efforts on the scene and on the way to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center, McClean was pronounced dead. 
 
 “It’s a terrible tragedy,” said neighbor Leonardo Coraci. “He’s a good kid, always said ‘hello,’ always respectful.” 
 
 Two firefighters suffered minor injuries. 
 
 “There’s signs around all these lakes in the city. Again, we implore you to tell your children, make sure they’re aware,” Healy said. “Today, the temperature was well above freezing. The ice is not safe, it’s not going to support your weight, and it can have tragic consequences.”
– An 11-year-old boy is being called a hero after he died trying to save a friend from a frozen pond Tuesday in New York City. CBS New York reports 11-year-old Anthony Perez and a 12-year-old friend were walking in a park in Queens around 4pm when the friend ventured out onto a frozen pond only to fall through the ice about 50 feet from the shore. Police say Anthony rushed to help his friend and fell in, too. "[Anthony] was able to push him out to safety, but he fell through ice and he couldn’t get out,” a law enforcement source tells the New York Post. The friend immediately ran for help. But by the time firefighters and police officers arrived, Anthony had been underwater for about 30 minutes and wasn't breathing, the New York Daily News reports. Multiple rescuers fell through the ice while trying to get to Anthony. “They had to—physically with their hands—break through the ice and chop through the ice so that they could get to the area where they knew the child would most likely be,” CBS quotes FDNY Deputy Chief George Healy as saying. Rescuers provided CPR at the scene and on the way to the hospital, but Anthony was pronounced dead. Two firefighters had to be treated for hypothermia. A neighbor says it doesn't surprise her that Anthony risked his life to help his friend. "He’s got a good heart that little boy," Angela Vargas says. “I’m going to call him a hero: He’s a hero,” neighbor Carmen Rivera tells the Post. (In Utah, a deputy with no protective gear rescued a boy from a frozen pond.)