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Child Pulled Under Tractor While Trying To Scare People On Haunted Hayride

Child Dead At Tennessee Haunted Halloween Hayride After Being 'Struck By A Tractor'

A child died late on Friday night after being struck by a tractor during a haunted Halloween hayride event in rural Tennessee.

At 10:45 p.m. local time on Friday, deputies from the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office responded to the Haunted Hilltop event being held in the tiny town of Harrison, outside Chattanooga. There, callers reported that a juvenile had been “struck by a tractor” and pulled under, per the sheriff’s release.

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On Saturday, the HCSO took to Facebook to confirm a child had indeed been hit by a hayride tractor at the late-night Halloween event:

“On October 11, 2024, at approximately 10:45 P.M., Hamilton County Sheriff’s deputies, along with Hamilton County EMS and the Highway 58 Fire Department responded to the 8200 block of Highway 58 for an initial call that a juvenile had been struck by a tractor.”

Even worse though, was the outcome. Per the HCSO press release sent out on social media and to local news outlets, the unnamed juvenile was pronounced dead at the scene. He had “fallen underneath the wheels” of the tractor after apparently attempting to hide in the bushes nearby and jump out to scare some of the visitors who were riding in the passing vehicle. Despite the efforts of first responders, the child was pronounced dead at the scene:

“Upon arrival, HCSO deputies spoke with a chaperone for a group of juveniles that had been playing near a hay ride tractor route and were behind some bushes trying to scare some hay riders at the Haunted Hilltop Halloween event. Deputies were told that one of the juveniles had attempted to jump on the trailer and had possibly slipped and fallen underneath the wheels and was found unresponsive. Sadly, the juvenile succumbed to their injuries and was pronounced deceased on the scene.”

The HCSO concluded their report without naming the child, citing the deceased’s age:

“HCSO detectives were immediately called to the scene to assist with the investigation, in conjunction with the Hamilton County Medical Examiner’s Office. The HCSO family extends our thoughts and sympathy to the family of the deceased juvenile, as well as the others who witnessed the tragic event. We ask the community also keep this family in their prayers during this difficult time. As this incident pertains to juveniles, no further information is available.”

However, on Monday, Chattanooga’s local TV news outlet News Channel 9 was able to confirm the name of the child who died in the weekend’s tragic accident as Sam Jessen. That outlet also confirmed that an autopsy and further investigation by the Hamilton County Medical Examiner’s Office is ongoing this week.

As for the organizers of the Haunted Hilltop event, they shut things down for the rest of the weekend following the accident. They also took to Facebook on Saturday to post an update on their page (HERE) in which they described what allegedly happened in those awful, fateful moments:

“Apparently a young kid hid in the bushes and crossed over a barrier and when the hayride trailer went by he jumped out and attempted to get on the side of the trailer and was ran over by the trailer, Please give this family and the Hilltop family time to Grieve and get through this Horrible Accident, there will probably be a few press releases tomorrow.”

So, so heartbreaking. The Jessen family has since set up a GoFundMe page to help with funeral costs and associated memorial needs following Sam’s tragic death. As of late Tuesday morning, it had raised more than $34,000 in donations. You can visit that page HERE.

We send our condolences to the family over this awful loss.

[Image via Paramount Pictures/YouTube]

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Oct 15, 2024 12:07pm PDT