Christian Weaver: Twin of boy, 12, who drowned in Ohio River is devastated with trauma of incident
HUNTINGTON, WEST VIRGINA: The death of 12-year-old Christian Weaver, who drowned in the Ohio River in Guyandotte on Saturday, September 24, has left the community devastated. However, his twin brother, who witnessed him drowning, is still traumatized by the incident.
Speaking about the tragic incident, Brenton told WSAZ news they were “pretty close.” “We always played games, played outside, did everything together,” he said. He revealed on Saturday afternoon, he and Christian decided to go swimming with some of their friends near the East Huntington Bridge close to their home.
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After spending some time in the water, Brenton and his friends came out of the water but Christian stayed in. Brenton said Christian appeared to be struggling in the water but they didn’t take him seriously. Later the situation got worse and Christian started screaming for help. “At first we thought he was playing, because any other time we swim at the river, he plays like that,” Brenton said, adding, “We couldn’t help him because he was too deep.”
They immediately called 911 for help. “I was crying. It’s pretty rough not having a brother anymore,” Brenton said. First responders at the sight conducted a nearly two-hour search at the spot. Huntington Fire Chief Greg Fuller revealed the boy's body was recovered by the emergency team in the evening. His body was taken to the state Medical Examiner’s Office.
Mourning the loss of his brother, Brenton said he hopes other children avoid swimming in deep water. “Don’t swim in the river, because you might lose one of your family members or your best friends,” he said.
On Monday, September 26, close friends and community members gathered around the Weavers' home for a candlelight vigil. The students of Huntington East Middle School, where Christian used to study, described him as the type who never had a problem making friends. “He was a very smiley, very huggable child,” family friend Cassie Spurlock said, adding, “He didn’t know a stranger.”
Christian and Brenton were adopted by their grandparents and used to live with them. His grandmother described him as an extremely lovable and said he loved to give hugs. The family is currently devastated as they lost two family members on back-to-back days. Christian’s grandfather died on Friday, September 25, from health problems.