Austin Cliff Runyon, 8, of Belfry, Ky.
The incident took place during a private party at the park pool.
A witness who attended the party and asked to remain anonymous, said Austin Cliff Runyon, 8, of Belfry, Ky., was attending a party for a young friend at the pool when he went missing. Family and friends reportedly searched the poolside area and discovered Runyon in the water. A nurse on the scene reportedly performed CPR on the boy, but was unable to revive him.
The witness said Runyon was an exceptionally good swimmer.
Another report to The Logan Banner said the pool was poorly lit and only one lifeguard was on duty.
The accident happened Friday around 8:30 p.m. as the party, which started more than two hours earlier, was near its end.
The witness said there was a lack of supervision unlike other events at the pool the witness had attended.
“Usually there are two life guards and a uniformed conservation employee or someone else,” the witness said. “But they left one 16-year-old (girl) there as the lifeguard. There were at least 60 people there. All night long, we watched the water, the slide, the dive board and around the pool we were vigilant.”
The woman said around 8:30 p.m., one of the people at the party noticed that Runyon, who was reportedly in street clothing at that point, was missing and many people began looking for him.
The witness said there was not much lighting and somebody asked the lifeguard to turn the lights on.
“Everybody was leaving,” she said. “It starts getting really dark up there around 8 p.m. The little boy who was having a party was singing a last song (karaoke) and somebody came out and asked where Austin was at,” the witness said. “Everybody thought he was in the bathroom because he was dressed to go. People walked around looking for him. They thought he was around the court or by the creek, but he was in the deep end of the pool and we couldn’t even see him.
“When it was noticed that Austin was missing we went and got flashlights out of our car,” the witness said, noting two first responders were present who called fire and rescue workers to come down and help search for Runyon. Then, a relative of the witness found the missing boy in the pool.
“Her boyfriend dove in and got him,” the witness said. “A lady who is a registered nurse gave him CPR and tried her best to revive him.”
The witness said an investigation needs to be done in the aftermath of the tragedy and that changes need to be made, stating that the pool needs more lights, a spotlight and a backup generator.
Earlier that day power was out in that area. She said the state had made a huge investment in the convention center and rec center but there wasn’t enough money to put lights in the park pool and emergency life-saving equipment wasn’t readily available.
“There was not a portable defibulator there,” she said of a first aid device used to shock the heart muscle into pumping again. “They have those in airports and train stations, but there is not one in a park run by the state? They need to make renovations and make it safer. There are so many people who go there to swim in the summer. It’s often packed out. The people of Logan County need to insist on changes until it’s a safe place for kids to go play and swim.
“This is a shame. There were two lifeguards there at the beginning and one adult. Later there was a 16-year-old. When one lifeguard collected the money, she left. There was one uniformed guy there, but he left. Why would you leave one 16- year-old girl there as the lifeguard? This is such a tragedy that shouldn’t have happened.”
On Monday, Chief Logan State Park Superintendent Bruce Collinsworth said an investigation into the accident is ongoing. This morning, Paul Redford, from the state parks office in Charleston told The Logan Banner the West Virginia State Police is handling the investigation and the pool may remained closed for the rest of the season.
The West Virginia State Police is investigating the child’s death. “The state police are looking into the matter and we have closed the pool down until further notice,” Redford said.
Runyon was a third-grade student at Southside Grade School in Pike County and is the son of Barry Cliff Runyon of Turkey Creek, Ky., and Cynthia Starr Fite of Hardy, Ky.
Runyon’s mother is a U.S. Postal Service carrier in downtown Logan. Logan Postmaster Thea Ferguson said any donations to the family can be dropped off at local post offices or given to carriers and they will then be sent on to Runyon’s family.
Funeral services were conducted today at noon at the First Baptist Church of Belfry. Burial was in the Mountain View Memory Gardens at Maher near Williamson in Mingo County.
Was the boy found clothed in street clothing or swim trunks underwater ? Does anyone know if he was on any sort of cold meds or inhalers ? Was there rough housing and he was pushed ? Was there an autopsy ?