FAYETTEVILLE -- A 6-year-old boy who disappeared from Vandergriff Elementary School and was found in a nearby pool died Wednesday morning at Arkansas Children's Hospital in Little Rock, police and school officials said.
"This is a horrible day," Superintendent Matthew Wendt said during a late afternoon news conference. "We're in the kid business, and this is not what it's supposed to be.
"We lost a human life," he said.
Wendt expressed his sympathy for the boy's mother, father, grandparents and extended family. Wendt would not name the student Wednesday.
School officials and police are both conducting investigations, Wendt said.
"Yesterday is going to cause some changes because it's already started conversations," Wendt said. "We will do whatever we need to do to correct what needs to be corrected."
Staff members noticed the child was missing Tuesday when students lined up to go inside from a roughly 30-minute recess that routinely takes place at 2 p.m. each day, Wendt said.
Within a short period of time, the staff took a series of actions to respond, Wendt said. An announcement was made of a playground emergency, with staff members following steps in the campus crisis plan. Two 911 calls were made by the staff.
Employees conducted a search, and the elementary pupil was found in the pool of the private residence that borders the east side of the campus, Wendt said. The child was pulled from the water, and first aid was given.
Fayetteville police responded to two calls around 2:45 p.m. Tuesday, one for a missing person that came from the school and another to assist Fayetteville Fire Department and Central Emergency Medical Services with what was a possible drowning on the property next to the school.
The child was found unresponsive and was taken to Washington Regional Medical Center and then to Children's Hospital, police said in a statement released Wednesday. The child died at 10:05 a.m. Wednesday.
Wendt estimates the child was missing for 10 to 15 minutes, though investigations by the school district and Police Department will determine how long, he said.
The four teacher aides who routinely supervise recess were on duty Tuesday, Wendt said. They have training, including in working with students, managing behavior and in CPR.
"Yesterday was a very difficult day for those four," Wendt said, referring to Tuesday.
The campus had extra staff members present Wednesday to provide support to employees, he said.
The playground at Vandergriff does not have a fence around it; Wendt, who became superintendent in July, said he does not know the reasons. The campus was constructed in 1995, adjacent to the house that had been there for many years before the school.
"Then yesterday occurred," Wendt said.
The child's body will be sent to the state Crime Laboratory, according to police.
Counselors will be at Vandergriff for the rest of the week, district officials said.
Wendt asked members of the community to keep the family in their thoughts and prayers.
"Yesterday's accident has created an unbelievable level of pain for so many wonderful people," Wendt said. "We will mourn together and comfort each other through this most difficult time."
Metro on 03/09/2017