Missing Alberta toddler found in a field following extensive search

Matthew Scace · The Canadian Press

· Posted: May 14, 2025 8:36 AM EDT | Last Updated: 4 minutes ago

It took the efforts of 200 section volunteers, a helicopter, drones and ATVs to way down a missing two-year-old lad successful the pitch-black nighttime of Alberta's Peace Country.

And successful the end, it's apt the toddler had simply dozed disconnected aft wandering retired into a field.

"I'm guessing the kid conscionable fell asleep," RCMP Const. Lucas Lehman said Tuesday.

A sweeping night-long hunt was triggered Sunday erstwhile RCMP successful Fairview, Alta., were called by the toddler's household aft they had searched the spot for him.

The kid had apt near the location without either genitor knowing, Lehman said, and the mates apt believed their kid was with the different parent.

The telephone prompted a hunt for the missing boy, bringing retired much than 200 volunteers successful Clear Hills County, a Mennonite assemblage much than 100 kilometres northbound of Grande Prairie, Alta., Lehman said.

"Everyone benignant of knows everybody successful those farming communities up there," helium said.

Wading done the dark

Volunteers waded done acheronian Prairie fields successful a line, moving crossed the spot similar a radar successful hopes of having 1 idiosyncratic way down the child. Lehman said they didn't expect a toddler to question excessively far.

"There's nary uncertainty successful my caput that astir apt 10 radical astir apt passed this kid," Lehman said.

The country is chiefly made up of farmland with immoderate trees. Most houses person dugouts — small, excavated h2o reservoirs — connected their properties.

"There was a dugout close successful beforehand of the house, too, which evidently made america beauteous nervous," Lehman said. Police archetypal scanned the dugout with a vessel and past pumped the full reservoir dry, helium said.

Found aft sunrise

The hunt ended soon aft sunrise Monday erstwhile a Grande Prairie Technical Search and Rescue chopper spotted the kid astir 1 kilometre from the home.

The lad was recovered to beryllium successful bully wellness and was reunited with his family.

"It's beauteous remarkable," Lehman said.

"Everyone's praying and everything similar that, and to find a kid here, everyone has a grin connected their look aft that."