An 8-year-old boy, Kyzr Willis, was attending day camp at the Curley Community Center in Boston when he went missing. The child is believed to have wandered from the facility’s bathhouse to a nearby beach at around 2:15 pm. Kyzr’s body, however, would not be found until some five hours later, as authorities reveal it appears the child died from drowning. The boy was not reported missing by the camp until a family member showed up to pick him up from the day camp, and the child was nowhere to be found. Kyzr’s parents are now asking questions and want to know how the child was able to leave the facility unnoticed.
The Daily Mail reports that an 8-year-old little boy is dead following a tragic incident at a day camp in Boston . The boy, Kyzr Willis, was attending camp at the Curley Community Center when he reportedly left the facility through a bathhouse unnoticed. The child is believed to have gone missing at approximately 2:15 p.m. but would not be reported missing until after 3 p.m. when a family member arrived to pick the child up from the camp program. When the camp staff went to retrieve Kyzr, they could not find him in the facility. Authorities were then called to the scene.
Here’s a picture of the missing child from Carson Beach.We ask anyone who sees him to call 911. Kyzr Willis – age 8 pic.twitter.com/2BRAHytFyf
— Mass State Police (@MassStatePolice) July 26, 2016
Sadly, after nearly five hours of searching, Kyzr’s body was found at nearby Carson Beach. The child is believed to have died from drowning. The Willis family is now looking for answers and wants to know how Kyzr was able to leave the day camp without staff noticing. It was pointed out that when they came to pick up Kyzr from the camp, staff were completely unaware the child was gone until they could not locate him to check him out for the day.
Sherie Seymore, a family friend and assistant pastor of the church that Kyzr attended, says that the family simply wants to know how this tragedy happened while the boy was supposed to be enjoying a day at the summer camp.
“Everyone wants to know. If they saw him go into the bathhouse, how come they never saw him come out?”
The Boston Globe notes that state police are reporting the last time that Kyzr was seen by camp staff was at approximately 2:05 p.m. when he entered the bathhouse . Although he was seen going into the bathhouse, no member of the staff was able to report that he ever returned. Therefore, police believe the child wandered away from the bathhouse to Carson Beach, which is located behind the facility, and subsequently drowned as he entered the water unsupervised.
What we know — and don’t know — about the death of Kyzr Willis https://t.co/69XWL1V3E6
— Matt Rocheleau (@mrochele) July 28, 2016
The day camp is operated by Boston Centers for Youth & Families, which is a city agency, and offers day camp at the facility from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Thursday. Will Morales, the commissioner of the program, says that the BCYF organization is heartbroken over the tragic accident and says that they are fully cooperating with state authorities. Meanwhile, the bathhouse at the Curley Community Center has remained closed as authorities investigate the incident.
“The entire BCYF community is absolutely heartbroken on the loss of Kyzr Willis and our deepest sympathies go out to this young boy’s family. BCYF will work closely with the Boston Police Department throughout the investigation.”
NEW: vigil held by family of Kyzr Willis, the boy found dead in water off #Carson beach. Hear from them #7News pic.twitter.com/LL3XAJ7Ic9
— Kimberly Bookman (@KimberlyBookman) July 28, 2016
Kyzr’s mother spoke about the last time she saw her son, saying that she dropped her son him off at camp at 9:45 a.m., and everything was happening as usual. However, when she returned at 3 p.m. to pick him up, Kyzr was nowhere to be found. She says it is unlike Kyzr to wander away without an adult and says he “a good kid.”
“He’s a good kid. I don’t know why he would ever go off…. He’s always with an adult.”
Do you think BCYF should be held responsible and programs halted until authorities can determine if children in the program are being properly supervised?
[Image via Kyzr Willis /GoFundMe]
