Posted on 01/22/2016 9:24:34 AM PST by Harmless Teddy Bear
Distraught searchers announced Thursday they had found the small body of Noah Chamberlin, a Tennessee toddler who wandered off one week ago while walking in the woods with his grandmother.
Chester County Sheriff Blair Weaver was overcome as he delivered the news in a press conference at a local church.
He paused for several moments after announcing "We have found Noah Chamberlin." Struggling with his emotions and breaking into tears, the sheriff added, "He was located about one-and-a-half miles from the home where he went missing ... The family has been notified."
Noah, who loved running and hiding, had taken off while he was in the woods with his grandmother and his older sister.
"Just like grandma said, she turned her head for a minute and he was gone," Weaver said. "There were trails everywhere." Hundreds of volunteers had been scouring the rugged area. Noah's body was found after authorities expanded their search area.
He was found in a clearing, just a half-mile outside of the original grid combed by rescuers. Authorities had not believed the toddler could get that far on his own, despite his penchant for running off.
"Everybody we talked to talked about how he ran all the time, jumped over tables, ran, just nonstop," Mehr said. "He loved to hide. We had people tell us that even adults would run after him, and they couldn't catch him." His family asked for privacy and thanked the community for looking for their boy.
"They just said they wanted to make sure everybody knew how much they appreciated that," Mehr said. "They want Noah's life to be honored in the fact that he brought a community together."
Parents Jacob and Destiny Chamberlin are left with their 4-year-old daughter. The father is a truck driver. Both kids were being watched by their grandmother while their mother went to the store.
Sad story. I was hoping it would end differently.
Wonder if FLIR was used that first night? From helicopter
He liked to run and to hide, as children will do. They are
just too little to realize any danger. Our son used to take
off running when he was little, and at one time, we lived
right on a busy street. Didn’t take us long to get moved
back off the highway; but still, the weather here has been
brutal the past few days. Jan. & Feb. are usually always
really cold & harsh here. Nov. & Dec. are generally mild,
but we do have winter. - A small child is just enjoying
life, and an adult running after them and calling them only
adds to their idea that it’s all just fun. - These old bones
have to absorb a lot of grief in this present life. I’m
thankful for every halfway decent day and I don’t blame the
Lord for every bad thing that happens. - I’m sure the
authorities are second-guessing everything AND perhaps
this situation will affect any future similar efforts at
least in this area as well as that part of the state.
There was a lot of info the media never gave us about this family and this incident.
It was said there was numerous sinkholes, ponds, caves, ravines etc in the area and how dangerous it was for the volunteers doing the searching, yet, a 2 year old was able to navigate through all of that for a mile and a half to 2 miles. To survive all that and then found in an open clearing.
No mention what so ever of the family life style, history, or that of the grand parents.
All we heard was no foul play, we believe everything the grandmother said, to quote “just like grandma said”. Sorry, I am not buying this story as told.
At Christmas, we rented a cabin in NC. My SIL went outside with my 3 year old grandson. In less than 2 minutes he was GONE. we fanned out in every direction screaming his name, scrambling over fallen tree, rocks, hills. It was pandemonium. We found him in about 10-15 minutes. There are no words to describe the panic and grief. He had climbed up in the truck and was eating tootsie rolls. The grief this family is going through is indescribable.
She was not rambunctious. Very quiet. But very fast. Like trying to hold a handful of smoke.
I know what you mean. I had one of those harnesses for my toddlers, little boys who would run into a crowd of people or into the road because something caught their interest. Also got the nasty comments and feel the same as you, no regrets.
A leash is humane. I can only imagine how badly the grandmother feels right now. It was an accident but she is still going to feel guilty about it. For a long time.
You mean the grandma biker mama, tattoos and all who bragged about using her boobs to get out of a speeding ticket, or even biker grandpa, tats from shoulder to hands, including the fingers. You mean those grandparents?
The father who got into trouble with drugs out in San Bernadino Ca.
There is more to this story in my opinion. I could be wrong and if I am, my apologies.
Oh, that’s too bad. I was hoping they’d found him alive and I’d just missed the news.
It sounds like this boy needed some kind of herding/shepherd dog to be with him when he was outside.
And go farther faster.
Prayers up for everyone involved, especially the family.
How did search dogs not pick up his scent?
Crap
Prayers for his family.
That poor Grandma. My wife is a grandma and she’d never be the same if this happened to her.
My youngest son at age three—we lost him one summer night in a crowd on a boardwalk in NJ beach town.
With two other kids in tow, I thought my wife had him. She thought I had him.
It took us all of five seconds to realize he was gone. And I do mean gone.
The panic that set in was total and indescribable. I immediately went up to a policeman, described my son, what he wearing and the call went up and down the boardwalk.
In the meantime, I ran from booth to booth and asked people if they saw my son, and to notify the many police if they did.
I went through every emotion possible. I now was the father of a missing child. All the other intact families I saw caused my panic to increase with each desperate moment.
It took almost two hours to find him. He was just fine.
And he was a mile away from where we lost him.
The cops said he never cried. He just walked along with the crowd and everyone thought he belonged to someone else. He never made a fuss, he just had a grand old time.
He told the police that he went in and out of stores, booths, amusements to see what he wanted to see, and then he joined the crowd again.
Not a care in the world.
I tell you—that event aged me a few years in a few hours.
It never happened again. You have to be like a hawk over your children. It only takes a few seconds to lose them.
To be fair, there were torrential rains the evening he went missing. Lots of evidence washed away.
Two year olds don’t equate helicopters to searching for him.
Also, it has been UNSEASONABLY COLD here in Tennessee the
last few days. We’ve had to keep the woodstove stoked up
and the space heaters going. - And, yes, kids can go further, faster than you can even imagine ON THEIR OWN.
- I’m sure the grandmother is grief-stricken. I’m not
judging her tattoos, just the facts. . and KIDS CAN
disappear on you in a flash. - Sadly, in this day & age,
leashes ARE a viable option and could be good insurance
when you’re where you know there will be distractions.
Hindsight is always 20/20.
Yes I raised two boys and yes I know how fast they can be. I also know when they are 2 years old, they tire easily.
A 1 1/2 - 2 mile hike through those woods would be a challenge for any child, much less a 2 year old. Lets see, he survived torrential rains, freezing weather the first night, no tracks to be found the next day we are told yet later on they said they found tracks yet the dogs couldn’t find him???
We shall see.
So sorry that you lost your son so young.
Sometimes I think it’s a miracle that any of us make it through our young years. But for the grace of God, many of us would perish as teenagers...
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