A three-year-old boy who was recently rescued after spending two days lost in the North Carolina woods said that a bear protected him and kept him warm in the freezing weather conditions.
Casey Hathaway disappeared from his grandmom’s home while playing with two other children last week. The three-year-old was eventually discovered about a mile and a half away. Casey was found in surprisingly good condition considering that he was outside for two days during particularly lousy weather which included heavy rain and winds and temperatures that dipped into the ’20s.
“He didn’t say how he was able to survive and all that. He did say that he had a friend in the woods that was a bear that was with him,” Craven County Sheriff Chip Hughes said:
“This kid was strong, he was meant to survive. … He’s got a story to tell.”, he added.
Search teams from surrounding counties started searching for Casey after he was reported missing. The boy was finally found by a woman who was walking her dog. She said hearing a boy crying for his mother in the woods. Police soon found him approximately 50 yards into the woods, caught in vines and sticker bushes.
The boy's grandmother set up a GoFundMe page “at the public’s request.” The fundraiser is named “Casey and the Bear.”
The fundraiser’s description read:
“Casey is the most amazing three year I have ever met. This little one was lost in the woods for days in the freezing temperatures, rain, dark nights and wind. He told us that his best friend the bear was with him to help keep him safe. Thanks to God’s mercy he came home to us alive and well. His parents searched diligently minute after minute of every hour/day without stopping.
Our supportive followers of this story have asked for a GoFundMe page be created for the family. This is reason for setting up the page. I am Casey’s paternal grandmother aka Memaw to him. I am Casey’s dad’s mom. So many of the public followers have asked for a GoFundMe for Casey and his family. I WANT TO MAKE THIS PERFECTLY CLEAR THIS IS NOT A REQUEST FROM FAMILY. THIS HORRIFIC EVENT WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED FOR PERSONAL GAIN. We as the family don't EXPECT donations. So on the behalf of the PUBLIC’S request only here it is.”
According to experts, the bear that Casey spoke of was likely a black bear since it's the only species of bear discovered in North Carolina. As of 2012, there were approximately 17,000 in the state, as reported by the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission. Black bears aren't known to attack humans, and they typically survive on a diet of berries, nuts, and small animals.
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