MICHIGAN CITY, Ind. — A fire official says an air pocket saved the life of a 6-year-old boy who was trapped for more than three hours under 11 feet of sand at an Indiana park.

Michigan City, Ind., Fire Chief Ronnie Martin told WSBT-TV yesterday that firefighters felt the air pocket while poking around for the boy Friday at the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore Park, along Lake Michigan.

He said firefighters then prodded something soft, saw the boy’s head and pulled him out.

Authorities said the boy had been playing on a dune that was cordoned off for restoration when he fell partially into it.

It collapsed in on him while his family was trying to pull him out.

The boy was flown to a Chicago hospital, where his condition last night was not disclosed.