2 Young Brothers Go to Play Near the Woods, Then Get Lost. Authorities Found Them Alive the Next Morning
Two young brothers were found safe in a wooded area in central Mississippi in the early morning hours of Sunday, Aug. 3
The search began the evening before, after the siblings got lost in the woods
Authorities urge parents to arrange a set time for children to return home when they're playing outsideAfter an overnight search, two young brothers were found alive and well in a wooded area in central Mississippi.
On Saturday, Aug. 2, authorities received a report at around 8 p.m. local time that two boys, ages 8 and 10, were missing near Cato Circle in Pearl, a city of about 27,000 people just east of Jackson, the state capital. The residential area is surrounded by dense woods, the Chief of the Pearl Police Department, Nick McLendon, tells PEOPLE.
Before their family reported them missing, the brothers were playing outside, in a ditch near the edge of the tree line.
'It started getting dark, and they thought they were walking home, but they were walking deeper in the woods,' says McLendon. 'Next thing they know, it's totally pitch black dark and they're in the woods lost.'
https://people-app.onelink.me/HNIa/kz7l4cuf
Not long after, authorities had close to a hundred resources on the ground, from drones and K-9s to search and rescue teams. In nearby Jenkins Park, a command center was set up, the chief of police says. A coordinated search effort was underway by 10 p.m.
Emergency responders began the search with drones in the air and the dogs searching the wooded area. While the dogs eventually lost the scent, they had helped narrow down the search area, McLendon says.
'We had a pretty good area of where they last located the scent and footprints in the creek,' he says. At around 1:15 a.m. the next morning, the brothers were found by a heat-seeking drone about 1,000 meters into the wooded area. They were found lying down, according to authorities.
'They just got lost in the woods, got turned around,' says McLendon. The boys told officials that when it got dark and they were still lost, they decided 'to sleep there and wait for the sun to come up.'
Never miss a story — sign up for to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
They were transported to a local hospital, but were determined to be unharmed.
McLendon says their family was 'ecstatic' that the kids were found safe.
'They were happy to be reunited with their kids,' he says.
While officials encourage children to play outside, they urge their parents to keep an eye on them.
'We'd love for them to get off the devices and be kids outside, but just monitor them,' says McLendon. 'Especially when it starts to get dark, they need to have a set time to start coming back home.'
Read the original article on People
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Times
6 minutes ago
- New York Times
Man Wanted for Tennessee Quadruple Homicide Is Arrested
A man wanted on charges of murdering four members of a family and driving off with the infant child of two of the victims last week has been taken into custody, the police in Jackson, Tenn., said on Tuesday. The authorities said they had captured Austin Robert Drummond, 28, who was wanted on four counts of first-degree murder, aggravated kidnapping and other charges after the bodies of the four victims were found on July 29 in Tiptonville, a town in northwestern Tennessee. Mr. Drummond was taken into custody in Jackson, about 75 miles southwest of Tiptonville. He had been spotted in Jackson before his arrest, prompting the police to urge people in the area to shelter in place. The authorities had been offering $32,500 for information about his whereabouts. He had been added to the list of Tennessee's Most Wanted. The case began just after 3 p.m. on July 29, when a caller informed the authorities that a minivan or sport-utility vehicle had dropped a baby in a car seat in a front yard near Tigrett, Tenn., about 40 miles south of Tiptonville, the Dyer County Sheriff's Office said. By 5:10 p.m., the authorities had identified the baby and were searching for three of the child's family members, whom they identified as Matthew Wilson, Adrianna Williams and Cortney Rose. Two days later, the sheriff's office confirmed the deaths of Mr. Wilson, 21, Ms. Williams, 20, and Ms. Rose, 38, as well as that of Braydon Williams, 15, who they said had been also been found dead in Tiptonville. Mr. Wilson and Ms. Williams were the parents of the baby, the authorities said. Ms. Rose was the baby's grandmother, and Mr. Williams the uncle, the district attorney's office said. Investigators did not say how the four victims had been killed or elaborate on a motive, but they confirmed that the four had been targeted and had a family connection to Mr. Drummond. In the last week, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation arrested three people on charges of accessory after the fact to first-degree murder, accusing them of having helped Mr. Drummond: Dearrah Sanders, 23; Tanaka Brown, 29, of Jackson, Tenn.; and Giovontie Thomas, 29. Mr. Brown also faces one count of tampering with evidence. All three, the bureau said, are 'associates' of Mr. Drummond's, but the authorities have not said how they helped Mr. Drummond. Mr. Drummond was previously convicted of armed robbery of a convenience store in Jackson in 2013, according to local news reports. He was sentenced to 14 years in prison and released in September 2024, according to state records. At a news conference on Friday, Danny Goodman Jr., the district attorney for Dyer and Lake Counties, said that Mr. Drummond had also been indicted on drug charges and attempted murder while in prison. Those cases are still pending, and he had been free on bond at the time of the quadruple murder, Mr. Goodman said. Hannah Ziegler and Sopan Deb contributed reporting.
Yahoo
34 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Man Accused of Killing 4 Family Members and Abandoning Baby in Tennessee Is Arrested
Austin Robert Drummond was arrested in Jackson, Tenn. Authorities in Tennessee say they have arrested the man accused of killing four family members and abandoning an infant in a stranger's yard. Austin Robert Drummond is accused of killing Adrianna Williams, 20, James M. Wilson, 21, Cortney Rose, 38, and Braydon Williams, 15, who were found dead on July 29, authorities said. Their bodies were discovered after James and Adrianna's baby was found 25 miles away. Following a multi-day manhunt, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation said Drummond was in law enforcement custody in Jackson, Tenn., on Tuesday, Aug. 5. Previously, authorities had obtained a warrant for Drummond's arrest on charges of first-degree murder, aggravated kidnapping, felon in possession of a firearm and one count of possession of a firearm during the commission of a dangerous felony. The victims were the mother, father, grandmother and uncle of the infant, who was found in Dyer County, police said. Drummond's empty car was found on Friday, Aug. 1, over an hour's drive away from where the four deceased individuals were located, the Dyer County Sheriff's Office said. Read the original article on People
Yahoo
38 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Police arrest suspect in killings of 4 Tennessee family members
Abandoned-Infant-Four-Dead JACKSON, Tenn. (AP) — The man wanted in the killings of the parents, grandmother and uncle of an infant found abandoned in a front yard has been arrested, police in Tennessee said Tuesday. Austin Robert Drummond, 28, was taken into custody amid a search, police in Jackson said in a social media post. Drummond's arrest came shortly after police had warned residents to stay inside their homes, having received a report that the man was spotted in a neighborhood. Jackson is more than 100 miles (161 kilometers) southwest of Nashville. Further details about Drummond's arrest weren't immediately available, and it was not immediately clear whether he had an attorney who could speak on his behalf. Hours before the arrest, Jackson Police posted a roughly 20-second video surveillance clip showing someone they said was the suspect, wearing camouflage and carrying a firearm, trying to enter the door of an unspecified building. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation has already charged Tanaka Brown, 29, and Giovonte Thomas, 29, with accessory after the fact to first-degree murder. Investigators allege both men 'assisted' Drummond, 28, in the family's killings. Drummond already faces four counts of first-degree murder, one count of aggravated kidnapping and weapons offenses, officials have said. Many questions are still unanswered, including how the relatives were slain and how the baby ended up in the Tigrett area, about 40 miles (64 kilometers) from the bodies. Last week, authorities said they found the car they believe Drummond had been driving. It was located in Jackson, about 70 miles (113 kilometers) from where the bodies were discovered and some 40 miles from where the baby was left. Tennessee Bureau of Investigation Director David Rausch has said authorities believe the family's killings were a targeted attack by Drummond, who had a relationship with the victims. The baby is safe and being cared for, authorities have said. Drummond's criminal history includes prison time for robbing a convenience store and threatening to go after jurors. He was also charged with attempted murder while behind bars. An attorney who represented him as a teenager had not returned earlier messages from The Associated Press. Authorities have identified the four people found dead in Tiptonville as James M. Wilson, 21; Adrianna Williams, 20; Cortney Rose, 38; and Braydon Williams, 15. Wilson and Adrianna Williams were the parents of the infant who was found abandoned. Rose was Adrianna and Braydon Williams' mother.
