BREAKING: The Project Lifesaver device for a 5-year-old Southwest Virginia girl who was found dead in South Carolina on Monday was found in Washington County, Virginia, according to Sheriff Blake Andis.

The tracking transmitter meant to help locate 5-year-old Saylor Hayes was never with her in South Carolina. Instead, Washington County Sheriff’s Office personnel found it inside a vehicle at her family’s home in Virginia — hundreds of miles from where search teams were looking.

Saylor, from the Bristol area of Washington County, had been enrolled in the sheriff’s office Project Lifesaver program since June 2024. She was reported missing Sunday, Aug. 30, after wandering from a family rental home in the Hagley Estates area of Pawleys Island. Her body was recovered Monday morning in the Waccamaw River near where she was last seen.

After Saylor was reported missing, the Georgetown County Sheriff’s Office contacted Washington County authorities and asked for her assigned radio frequency. Search teams in South Carolina could not detect a signal. Deputies then asked Washington County personnel to check the family residence. Officers picked up the frequency within about two miles of the property and tracked it to a vehicle on the grounds. The transmitter was inside.

“Project Lifesaver works, and we believe strongly in this program,” Sheriff Blake Andis said. “When our personnel searched for Saylor’s assigned frequency, the equipment did exactly what it was designed to do. It detected her transmitter and led our personnel to its location.”

He added: “What makes this situation especially heartbreaking is that Saylor did not have her transmitter with her when she went missing. Had Saylor been wearing her Project Lifesaver transmitter, we believe the technology could have assisted search teams in locating her much sooner. While no technology can guarantee an outcome, every minute matters when a vulnerable child or adult is missing.”

Project Lifesaver is a voluntary program used by law enforcement agencies to locate people at risk of wandering because of cognitive conditions or other special needs. Clients wear a small transmitter that emits an individualized radio frequency. Trained personnel can then track that signal. The band is designed for continuous wear and cannot simply be unclasped; it must be physically cut to remove the device. Caregivers are responsible for keeping it secured.

Washington County officials said the equipment performed as designed. The agency has emphasized that the program remains an important tool — but only when the transmitter stays on the person enrolled in it.

The circumstances surrounding Saylor’s death remain under investigation.

Sources:
Washington County Virginia Sheriff’s Office official statement and Facebook releases (Aug. 31 and Sept. 1, 2026); WCYB; WJHL; The Post and Courier; WBTW; Myrtle Beach Sun News; Georgetown County Sheriff’s Office statements.