Young brother, sister missing for 2 days recovering in hospital

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The parents of Braxton Williams, 6, and his 5-year-old sister, Bri’ya rushed to UF Health Jacksonville late Tuesday afternoon minutes after the rescuers who found the children in the woods carried them into the emergency room.

The children’s mother, Bianca Williams, told News4Jax anchor Joy Purdy by phone that the boy and the girl were doing great. She thanked Jesus and the community for helping find her children.

Wednesday afternoon, their father, Brian Williams, sent News4Jax a selfie with his children looking like happy 5- and 6-year-old children should look.

The siblings who were missing for 52 hours were described as “happy and talkative” when a search team found them in an abandoned pump house deep in woods about a quarter mile from where they disappeared. The children were a little dehydrated and had some scapes, bumps and bruises, but appeared to be in good health.

"The rescuers gave them a bottle of water and some candy,'' Jacksonville Fire Rescue Chief Powers said. “They were chewing on candy and said, ‘We are hungry and we want a cheese pizza.’ So officers and some of our personnel chipped in and got some pizzas and had them delivered.”

Roxanne Lloyd, the siblings’ grandmother, said also rushed to see them.

“They look good. They look like Braxton and Bri’ya. They told me they was ready to come home," Lloyd said. “I embraced the, just kissed their heads, faces, lips, whatever -- just killed (them) all over."

It was initially expected the children would go home Wednesday, but news came in the afternoon they would likely be kept in the hospital a second night.

Authorities haven’t said for sure if the children were in the woods the whole time they were missing, but Sheriff Mike Williams has said from the start that there was no reason to suspect foul play.

“There’s no reason to believe they weren’t (there the whole time),” Mike Williams said late Tuesday. “We’ll learn more once we have an opportunity to talk to them more.”

Miracle recovery

Just after 3:30 p.m. on the third day of a search for the missing children that included over 100 police, firefighters and other first responders and covered 130 acres in and around the Paradise Village Mobile Home Park off West Beaver Street, one team member thought he heard a child’s voice. The Urban Search and Rescue team fanned out and both children were discovered inside a dilapidated pump house into the woods between their home and Beaver Street.

WATCH: Family, searchers never lost hope | READ: Family grateful for help in search for missing children | TIMELINE: The search for Braxton and Bri’ya Williams

As the children were brought out of the woods about 4 p.m., their cousin saw the commotion and ran over.

“I didn’t know what to expect. I didn’t know if it was good, bad or whatever, but they reassured me that everything was perfectly fine,” she said. “We just thank God because the only thing we wanted was the kids home and safe with their parents, so it has been a glorious day.”

A News4Jax camera captured the siblings being loaded into a JFRD ambulance. A rescuer said the boy and girl were “tired, hungry, thirsty” and didn’t let go of first responders. The children also asked for cheese pizza, “which we delivered,” the sheriff said.

A group of first responders could be seen kneeling in prayer as the ambulance left for UF Health hospital, where Braxton and Bri’ya were taken for observation.

“It’s a miracle -- Christmas miracle. And it’s a blessing. A lot of hard work been done and that’s all I want to say. Thank God for it," JSO Assistant Chief Ellis Burns told News4Jax at the scene.

Another officer added: “It was a lot of hard work by a lot of hard people, but it paid off.”

According to the Sheriff’s Office, Braxton and Bri’ya were reported missing by a family member about 1:30 p.m. Sunday after they had last been seen about 11:30 a.m. while playing in the front yard of a home at the Paradise Village Mobile Home Park off West Beaver Street just east of Chaffee Road. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement issued the Amber Alert about 5:15 p.m. that day. Roxanne Lloyd, the children’s paternal grandmother, told News4Jax that her son was preparing for a barbecue when the children disappeared.

“I’m very excited. I’m so glad. This is the best news ever. We got our babies back. I never gave up. My son never gave up. We kept the faith and I thank God for that," she said Tuesday after her grandchildren were found. “I want to thank all the volunteers, JSO, the firefighters, whoever played a part in this. I want to say thank you from my son, Bryan Williams, and my daughter-in-law, Bianca Jackson.”

As of 11:30 a.m. Tuesday, according to the Sheriff’s Office, investigators had searched more than 430 homes in the community, 130 acres and 20 bodies of water, using air units and K-9s. The FBI, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children were among the agencies involved in the search.

“A lot of times we don’t have great outcomes. This is a glorious day for the city that we were able to do this. But it all goes to show you what the partnership, how it works and how we can make a difference in people’s lives,” JFRD Chief Keith Powers said. “The good thing is that family is fixing to have a wonderful Christmas. They just got the best Christmas present they’ll ever get in their entire life.”

The sheriff said it’s believed the children just wandered off and took shelter in the pump house. He said it’s unclear if that’s where the children were the entire time.

Once the two children were found, the Amber Alert was canceled at 4:39 p.m. Tuesday. The sheriff said it was the “best possible outcome.”

Relatives and friends gathered inside the family’s home Tuesday evening breathed a sigh of a relief for the first time in three days. Police and even complete strangers brought food to the family home as loved ones waited for Braxton and Bri’ya to return.

“It’s just to show them how happy we are for them to get their children back and how it’s a miracle of God," said Gabrielle Cruz, who dropped off food for the family.

Braxton’s and Bri’ya’s disappearance resonated with the community, including families who live nearby and volunteers who joined authorities in the search. Many offered prayers and expressed hope the children would be found safe. Their prayers were answered.