A Boy Dies and Another One in Critical Condition After Being Buried Alive in Snow

Tragedy struck in Greenwich, New York, after two boys playing outside have been unknowingly buried alive under a pile of snow. Joshua Demarest, 12-year-old, was playing with a friend in the snow when road workers accidentally buried both of them inside a snowbank.

When authorities arrived, they pronounced Joshua dead at the scene and pulled his friend out of the snow pile barely alive. The latter was immediately transported to the hospital, where he remains under close observation after suffering from advanced hypothermia.

Moreover, young boy’s death comes as a devastating blow to the Demarest family. Joshua’s mother was dealing with her own mother’s death in New Jersey when she was informed by the authorities of her son’s passing. Both losses occurred during the same day, only several hours apart.

The rescue workers with the Greenwich-Cambridge police were informed about two boys missing on Tuesday, December 13^th. George Bell, police Chief, said that Joshua and his friend, Tyler, both seventh-graders were reported missing Tuesday afternoon after they failed to return home by midnight. The police Chief adds the two Greenwich Central School students were playing with snow in a parking lot at the time of the incident.

A Demarest family members told George Bell the boys had taken their sleds out to play in the snow that afternoon. When searching for the boys, park rangers and state troopers discovered multiple footprints in a park yard, in close vicinity to where they were ultimately found. Police used a K-9 unit to help with the search. The dogs followed the boys’ scent to a large pile of snow, where they were discovered buried alive.

The authorities used snow rakes, shovels, and even their bare hands in an effort to pull the kids out. However, Joshua was pronounced dead at the scene. Tyler, in spite of showing clear signs of advanced hypothermia, was still able to speak to the rescue workers. He said that they were trying to build a fort in the snow when they heard the beeping of a dump truck backing up. According to his story, everything went dark after that.

In an official statement, the police Chief said that the road employees working on the other side of the massive snow pile were unaware that the boys were playing nearby. He then said that the workers were very affected by the tragedy after they learned of the young boy’s death. Ultimately, George Bell ends his statement by saying that nobody is at fault for Joshua’s death, as the incident was nothing short of a tragic accident.

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