OXFORD WEEKLY PLANET
Friday, July 22, 2022
Teenager found dead in swimming pool
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| photo credit: anokarina the last weekend of the last weekend ?♀️ via photopin (license) |
A teenage girl was found dead in her family's pool just before 4:00 p.m. today. Household staff notified 911.
Yoknapatawpha County Sheriff's officers responded to the residence on College Hill Road and discovered Alyx Byrns, 17, floating on a raft in the pool.
Sheriff's spokesperson Elizabeth Jones would not comment on how the young woman died but said the death is being investigated as suspicious.
Neighbors were shocked to learn Byrns was dead.
"When I saw the police cars, I just assumed Alyx was playing another one of her jokes," said a nearby resident who asked not to be identified. "I always thought she'd go too far one day with her pranks. I guess today was that day."
Jones declined to say whether the teen's death could have been the result of a prank gone wrong.
"Our detectives are investigating all available leads to get to the truth of what happened," Jones said.
Byrnes was a junior at Yoknapatawpha High School, whose students were off today for a faculty professional development day. School officials say grief counselors will be on campus Monday to help students cope with the sudden loss of their classmate.
No funeral plans have been announced. Calls to the Byrns family had not been returned by press time.
Check back for updates on this developing story.
