Nationwide — Davoris Carter III, a 14-year-old African American teen from Philadelphia, remains missing after disappearing in the Atlantic Ocean during a school trip to Wildwood, New Jersey. His mother is asking for answers as search efforts continue along the Jersey Shore.
Authorities said Carter, a student at Delta School in Philadelphia, went missing on June 1 during a chaperoned school outing. Officials reported that he entered the ocean at Wildwood along with three other students from the group.
A Wildwood officer entered the water and managed to rescue three swimmers. Two received treatment at the scene, while another was taken to Cooper University Cape Regional Hospital in stable condition. Carter did not make it back to shore.
His mother, Shyara Hill, said the family continues to wait for answers and recovery. “He deserves to be brought home. He should be home,” she told NBC Philadelphia.
Hill also raised concerns about the circumstances of the trip, including the weather and supervision at the beach. She said, “The weather when I got out there, it was cold. Why was the decision to go in the water? Where was the people that was supposed to be there supervising? No protection. No lifejackets”
Delta School, which serves students with special needs, said the trip included six students and six staff members. Hill said she still does not know who was directly supervising her son during the outing.
Police confirmed that no lifeguards were on duty at the time of the incident. The U.S. Coast Guard later conducted aerial searches along the coast, but officials ended active search operations last week.
Law enforcement agencies, the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services, and Delta School continue to investigate what happened during the school field trip. Hill has also called on organizations with underwater search equipment to help locate her son.
“He’s somewhere under the water. So, I’m just asking that if there’s any organizations that have technology or anything that could go in the water and look for him,” Hill said.