It’s always important to enter wild spaces adequately prepared. That responsibility doubles when you take children into the wild with you.
An Alaskan boy was found dead Saturday afternoon, after his mother reported that they got lost during a hike. The 36-year-old woman told authorities she left the boy on the trail after the two got disoriented on Wednesday.
The following is a press release from The Alaska Department of Public Safety.
Final Update: At approximately 1445 hours, ground searchers located Jaxson deceased and recovered his remains. Next of kin has been notified. AST would like to thank its partner agencies as well as the volunteer search and rescue personnel.
Update: Search efforts are ongoing for 5-year-old Jaxson Brown. Jaxson went out hiking with his mother, identified as Jennifer Treat, 36 of Ketchikan, on Wednesday (3-25-2020) afternoon. During the hike, the pair became disoriented and lost the trail. They spent the night together. In the morning, Treat left Jaxson to seek help on her own, as he was reportedly tired and didn’t want to hike anymore. In her rush to find help, Treat reportedly tripped on a root and significantly injured her leg. Treat was found the following day and search and rescue efforts immediately began for Jaxson. Currently, approximately 20 ground searchers are out. The USCG is flying one of its helicopters to support the search efforts. At this time, no additional volunteer searchers are needed. Additional untrained searchers may hamper efforts.
Original Text: On 3-27-2020 at approximately 1036 hours, AST received a request to help search for a woman and a five-year child, identified as Jaxson Brown. The woman’s vehicle was parked at Lunch Creek Trailhead in Ketchikan. A search was initiated and the woman was located alone approximately three miles up the trail with significant injuries to her leg. The search efforts are ongoing for Jaxson. Jaxson is a white male, approximately 4’ 2” and 70 pounds. He has blond hair and blue eyes. He was last seen wearing a black jacket and camo pants. Anyone with information regarding Jaxson’s whereabouts are encouraged to contact Troopers in Ketchikan at 907-225-5118 or in the case of an emergency, dial 9-1-1.
