Autopsy report released for 5-year-old Saylor Hayes after being found dead on Pawleys Island
GEORGETOWN, S.C. —
The Georgetown County Coroner’s Office has released the autopsy for Saylor Hayes, a 5-year-old with autism who was found dead on Pawleys Island.
Georgetown County Coroner Chase Ridgeway said his office was notified by the Georgetown County Sheriff’s Office that Saylor’s body was found in the Waccamaw River on Aug. 31 at approximately 9:54 a.m.
The coroner said during his initial investigation, after Saylor was transported to the Georgetown County Morgue, she was found wearing a bathing suit with a strap attached to her ankle that was said to be consistent with a child’s wrist tether strap. The coroner reported no external signs of trauma were seen in his examination.
On Friday, an autopsy was performed at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston, South Carolina, by a forensic pathologist.
Officials say that autopsy revealed pulmonary edema, a condition caused by a build up of fluid in the lungs which severely restricts airflow.
While officials wait for further testing, the cause and manner of death remain unknown. Ridgeway says his office anticipates the full report being made available in eight to ten weeks.
Saylor Hayes reported missing on Pawleys Island
Saylor Hayes was reported missing on Sunday afternoon, Aug. 30, on Pawleys Island, where she was staying in a rented home with her family.
Searchers said Saylor was part of the Project Lifesaver program, which is used to find missing people with a cognitive condition. The Georgetown County Sheriff’s Office said it deployed Project Lifesaver equipment throughout the search to try to get a signal from Saylor’s device she was supposed to be wearing.
What is Project Lifesaver?
Project Lifesaver assists law enforcement in locating individuals who are at risk of wandering due to cognitive conditions or other special needs. Clients wear a small transmitter that emits an individualized radio frequency, allowing specially trained personnel to track and locate them if they become missing.