WILLIAMS – A two-year old boy is back safely with his family after wandering away from a campsite Wednesday afternoon.
At approximately 5:45 pm on Wednesday, Coconino County Sheriff’s Office responded to a call of a 2 year old boy who wandered away from the family’s campsite south of Williams, AZ near Hyde Hill. The campers, who were from the Phoenix area, consisted of a family of four adults and five children. They were setting up their camp off of the Forest Service 139 road when they realized the child was missing. They had last seen him approximately 20 minutes prior, and he had been playing with the other children next to the campsite.
Deputies from the Coconino County Sheriff’s Office, Williams Patrol District responded to initiate the investigation and establish containment of the search area. They coordinated bystanders and family who wanted to assist. Deputies from the Flagstaff Patrol District also responded as did the Sheriff’s Search and Rescue Unit. Arizona Department of Public Safety, Northern Air Rescue was requested and flew over the area. Other agencies that assisted with the search included the Williams Fire Department and personnel from the Kaibab National Forest.
At approximately 7:30 pm, the child was located by one of the deputies searching the area. The child was found approximately 0.7 miles northwest of the camp in the forest near a road. The child was in good condition and was reunited with family members.
“We credit the success in finding the child to several factors, including that the report was called in timely and that Sheriff Deputies were able to get to the scene quickly,” the press release stated.
The Coconino County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue Unit provides preventative search and rescue education in the form of the Hug-A-Tree program to elementary age school children. The program has been offered and continues to be offered to schools in Coconino County. If a school or group would like to request a program please contact the Coconino County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue Unit.