Two US boys die in separate Halloween hayride tractor accidents

Two boys recently died at separate Halloween-themed haunted hayride attractions in tractor accidents, authorities said.

The first boy died about 10.45 pm on 11 October at the Haunted Hilltop Halloween event in Hamilton county, Tennessee. A group of children at the event were playing near a path through which hay ride tractors drove, the Hamilton county sheriff’s department said.

A chaperone for the group told sheriff’s deputies that the children were “behind some bushes trying to scare some hay riders”. One of them appeared to have tried jumping on the trailer but slipped, falling under the tractor’s wheels.

“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,” the attraction said on Facebook, imploring the community to give the boy’s family time to grieve.

The Chattanooga Times Free Press identified the victim as Samuel Jessen, 12. A GoFundMe was organized to help the Jessens with funeral costs.

A similar tragedy unfolded just before 8pm on 12 October at the Harvest of Horror Haunted Hayride attraction in St Augusta, Minnesota. Alexander Mick, 13, appears to have been run over by a wagon that was pulled by a tractor, the Stearns county sheriff’s office said in a statement.

While attendees and first responders tried to save the boy’s life, he died at the scene. His mother, Teri Mick, reportedly described her late child as “an amazingly unique child who loved Jesus with all his heart”.

“He was full of life, a junior black belt in taekwondo, played drums for the worship team, he was in band, sang in choir, in robotics and soccer and almost was an Eagle Scout,” she told CBS News.

The attraction said in a statement on its website that they’re “cooperating fully with the authorities and are grateful for their support”.

“We are deeply shaken by this event and are asking for thoughts, prayers and support for the family and friends of the individual involved and all those affected by this tragedy,” they said.

Out of respect to the family involved, the organizers made the decision to cancel the remaining nights of the 2024 Harvest of Horror.

Hayrides grew popular in the late 19th century with urban families increasingly partaking in leisure travel, according to the Northern Kentucky Tribune. Tourists decamping cities for the countryside had read “idealized accounts of hayrides in children’s books” and countryside farmers acted on this, pitching authentic hayrides, per the publication.

These rides, which involved spreading hay in a wagon, were a popular pick for farmers. There was more money to be made offering rides to “summer people” compared to selling the hay outright.

While there are voluntary safety standards for hayride operators, meaningful regulation remains scant, the Tribune notes. White Hutchinson, a company that consults in agritourism, said in 2023 that US hayride accidents have caused a minimum of 24 deaths and 204 injuries since 2000.

A 17-year-old girl died at a haunted hayride in Maine 10 years ago after it slipped down a hill and struck a tree, for example. More than 20 others were injured in the incident, per the Associated Press.