The kidnapping

Authorities said Dykes abducted the young boy from a school bus January 29.

Dykes approached the bus and demanded that the driver hand over two children. Dykes killed driver Charles Poland as he blocked the aisle -- allowing children to escape from the back of the bus -- but Dykes seized Ethan and fled to the bunker, according to authorities.

During the ensuing standoff, authorities were extraordinarily tight-lipped about what was happening, but said they were in contact with Dykes and said they believed he had not harmed the boy. He also allowed authorities to deliver food, medicine and at least one toy for the boy to play with, according to authorities.

The details about the law enforcement response to his abduction are the first provided by authorities about how they knew what was going on inside the bunker and why they decided to move when they did.

But many questions remain, including whether the Defense Department provided sensing equipment to aid in monitoring what was happening inside the bunker and why Dykes acted as he did.

'A big boom'

At one point Monday, Dale County Sheriff Wally Olson told reporters that Dykes had "a story that's important to him, although it's very complex."

But according to a law enforcement source, Dykes' mental state deteriorated in the 24 hours before the Monday afternoon rescue.

Experts from FBI units, including a crisis negotiation team, tactical intelligence officers and a behavioral sciences unit, had determined Dykes was in a downward psychological spiral, the source said.

At 3:12 p.m. (4:12 ET) on Monday, the FBI team went in.

While the law enforcement source said FBI agents went in through the top of the bunker, the source declined to say specifically how they breached the roof, how many agents were involved or whether Dykes shot himself or was killed by FBI gunfire.

A Dale County official told CNN that Dykes had been shot multiple times. The body remains "in the area" and will be examined by the county coroner before it is taken to Montgomery, Alabama, for autopsy by the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences, the official said.

Tom Fuentes, a former FBI assistant director, said the rescue likely was complicated by the layout and materials used to build the underground bunker.

Rescuers would have had to come down stairs, exposing their legs and meaning Dykes would see them first, he said. And if there were brick walls, the FBI agents would have to shoot carefully to guard against ricochets -- all that after probably tossing in a flash grenade to stun the kidnapper.

"The FBI hostage rescue team is the best in the world, and they proved it yesterday," said Fuentes, who was not involved in Monday's rescue.

A law enforcement source would neither confirm nor deny that a flash grenade was used.

What's next for Ethan?

While Ethan recuperated Tuesday from his ordeal, school officials began planning a party to celebrate the boy's birthday and to honor Poland, the bus driver hailed by school officials as a hero.

While the party won't be ready by Ethan's birthday, it will be held soon -- likely at the Dale County High School football stadium, Bynum said.

Ethan's elementary school principal, Phillip Parker, said teachers are eager to have him back and "wrap their arms around him."

"Everybody knows Ethan. He's a good kid, a friendly kid," Parker said.

Relief that Ethan was safe was palpable in Midland City, but many questions remain about what comes next for him.

How does a 5-year-old heal from this ordeal? How does a youngster go on after witnessing his bus driver shot to death, then being dragged to an underground bunker by a gun-toting stranger? How will he deal with what he experienced the six days he languished in that hole and what he saw during the explosive rescue Monday that killed his captor?

"It's very hard to tell how he's going to do," said Dr. Louis Krause, a psychiatrist at Chicago's Rush Medical Center. "On the one hand, he might get right back to his routine and do absolutely fine. But on the other hand, the anxieties, the trauma, what we call an acute stress disorder, even post-traumatic stress symptoms, can occur."