Thirteen-year-old Xavier Thompson had been ecstatic just a day earlier, dancing in his living room after making his middle school basketball team in Katy, Texas. The next day, during practice at Thornton Middle School, he collapsed from what his family says was an asthma attack. As his teammates panicked and his parents rushed to the scene, one question now haunts his grieving family: why wasn’t 911 called immediately?
Xavier’s mother, Brittany Thompson, received a frantic call—not from the school, but from a terrified student asking for guidance as her son struggled to breathe. Despite her urging and the fire station located just next door, emergency responders were not summoned by the school staff. By the time Xavier’s father arrived, the teen had stopped breathing. CPR performed by his father was tragically unsuccessful, leaving the family devastated and questioning the school’s preparedness for medical emergencies.
The Thompsons had arranged an asthma action plan with the Cypress Fairbanks Independent School District, ensuring the school had two inhalers reserved for Xavier. Yet when crisis struck, those measures seemed inadequate. “What’s the point of all these protocols if kids are the ones having to ask what to do?” Brittany Thompson asked, her voice breaking as she reflected on her son’s preventable death.
The incident has drawn parallels to other recent tragedies involving students collapsing at school. In August, 14-year-old Landon Payton died at Marshall Middle School in Houston after collapsing in the gym. His father later learned the school nurse lacked training in CPR and the school’s automated external defibrillator (AED) was reportedly outdated. These events highlight a troubling pattern of gaps in emergency responses at schools.
As the Thompsons await autopsy results, Brittany Thompson remains consumed by grief, questioning the choices made that day. “I just want my son back,” she said through tears. The family’s attorney, George Powell, criticized the school’s reliance on notifying parents during an emergency rather than taking immediate medical action. “Calling the parents doesn’t save lives,” he said. For Xavier’s family, the loss is immeasurable, and their pain echoes that of others left wondering if better preparedness could have saved their children.
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