Halloween Hayrides 1K Miles Apart End in Tragedy

Two boys have died after haunted hayrides in two different states went "awry" on back-to-back days, per CBS News. Investigations are ongoing in both cases.

• Tennessee: The first accident happened Friday evening at a hayride during a "Haunted Hilltop" Halloween event near Chattanooga. Per the Hamilton County Sheriff's Office, sources told deputies that a group of kids were messing around near the tractor's route, hiding behind bushes and "trying to scare some hay riders." "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," the sheriff's office notes. The 12-year-old, identified as Samuel Jessen in the Chattanooga Times Free Press, was pronounced dead at the scene. Event organizers announced the venue would be closed on Saturday. Meanwhile, a GoFundMe for Samuel's family had raised $35,000 as of Wednesday morning.

• Minnesota: On Saturday night, another hayride tragedy took place more than 1,000 miles away. Per a release from the Stearns County Sheriff's Office, a call came in just after 7:30pm local time about an accident at the "Harvest of Horror Haunted Hayride" in St. Augusta. "The initial caller reported that a young male had been injured when he was run over by a trolley wagon being pulled by a tractor," the statement notes. Although first responders rendered aid, 13-year-old Alexander "Xander" Mick was pronounced dead at the scene. "Xander was an amazingly unique child who loved Jesus with all his heart," his mom, Teri Mick, tells WCCO. "He was full of life." The rest of the "Harvest of Horror" nights have been canceled out of respect for the family.

(More hayride stories.)