GENEVA TOWNSHIP, Mich. — A 3-year-old little boy popped out the screen door of his Geneva Township home Monday and was missing for about 30 minutes before authorities were called.
The Van Buren County Sheriff happened to already be with a South Haven police officer, near where the child went missing. They say it's a good thing they were so close by.
It was all hands on deck from there. Michigan State Police, South Haven Area Emergency Services, and Van Buren County all started looking for the boy.
He was found about a half an hour later.
“It was gut-wrenching sitting with the family at the scene. Seeing the angst on their face, all the anxiety,” Van Buren County Sheriff Dan Abbott said.
Drones and K9s were used to track the child in the area of 68th Street and Phoenix, just outside of South Haven.
“Our K9 did find a small footprint in the dirt,” Abbott said.
That finding from the K9 happened at nearly the exact same time the child was located by South Haven Area Emergency Services' drone.
A crying, but safe, child was found shortly after.
“This particular K9 has recovered four other children, similar type scenario,” Abbott said.
The boy was reunited with his parents, in what the sheriff's office says they know is the ideal outcome for a situation like this.
“They don’t always end this way. Where this particular child went missing, there are several ponds in the area. There’s a stream behind where this house is at. As everybody knows, children like to go to water. When the child was recovered, he was between a pond and a lake area on a little patch of woods,” Abbott said.
The family released the following statement:
“Words cannot accurately describe the gratitude our family has for the first responders both on duty and off duty, our community, and everyone that came together to bring our son home safely. Because law enforcement responded so quickly on foot, with drones, and search dogs, we are forever grateful. It is our hope that these resources are available to any family experiencing the nightmare that we did and that they will be met with the professionalism, compassion, and heroism that we were.”
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