GREEN COVE SPRINGS, Fla. – A Clay High School junior died Thursday night after a medical emergency at Ronnie Van Zant Memorial Park, the Clay County Sheriff's Office said.
The student was 16-year-old Matt Purdy. The cause of his death is still under investigation, but his mother, Brenda Purdy, told News4Jax it appears to be an allergic reaction.
She said Matt was with a friend at the park when he collapsed off the back of a bicycle and had trouble breathing. She said she didn't learn of the emergency until two hours after it happened and by then it was too late.
"I just want him to come through the door and tell me that I'm nagging at him too much because he didn't do his homework -- he hated homework -- or empty the dishwasher," Purdy said.
Deputies said they were called to the park in Green Cove Springs at 6 p.m. after Matt's friend called 911 about a possible medical emergency.
Purdy said she believes her son might have had an allergic reaction to a drug called K2, also known as synthetic marijuana, which causes hallucinations.
Clay County firefighters were performing CPR on Matt when deputies arrived, but he later died at St. Vincent's Hospital, deputies said.
Brenda Purdy said her family is crushed by Matt's death.
She said she had spoken to him on the phone hours before he died but had no reason to believe he was in any danger.
Now as she waits to find out what caused Matt's death, Purdy reflects on the good times.
"He would come in here, because he was bigger than me he would come and pick me up, give me a big hug, (a) bear hug, lift me off my feet," she said.
Matt's close friend Jake Eckert usually picks Matt up for school, but when Matt didn't respond to Jake's text Friday morning Jake knew something was wrong.
"It feels like losing my little brother," Jake said. "I don't know how to put it. It's just a pain. It hurts really bad."
Jake said he's trying to stay positive because that's what Matt would have wanted.
"I just want to say that I really miss him and love him -- and I'll see him again," Jake said.
Clay County Schools had grief counselors at the high school Friday helping students.
Deputies said they are investigating Matt's death and are awaiting an autopsy report from the Medical Examiner's Office and toxicology results from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement lab.