Clever search tactic helps find boy missing in cornfield
A missing boy and his dog who wandered off into a cornfield were found safe ten hours later all thanks to an innovative search tactic.
More than 600 volunteers turned up and they were assisted by numerous law enforcement agencies when six-year-old Ethan Haus wandered off from his family home about 4pm on Tuesday night (local time), according to Sherburne County Sheriff’s Office.
Thankfully the boy and his dog Remington were found safe and unharmed about 1.50am Wednesday morning thanks to a private drone operator who was also part of the rescue crew.
Steve Fines, a drone operator from Fines Imaging used heat-seeking technology to find Ethan and Remington.
Although it was the drone which found Ethan, Mr Fines said on Facebook it was a footprint that lead him, and his drone in the right direction.
“I only knew in which direction to look because volunteers on the ground had found a footprint that pointed me in the right direction,” Mr Fines wrote on his Facebook page, Fines Aerial Imaging LLC.
“I knew which areas had already been searched because of the excellent coordination of the Sherburne County Sheriff.”
Mr Fines took a thermal image of the search party – all the time orange dots are actually people who helped find Ethan.
“There were literally hundreds of people walking across wet muddy ground, in 30 degree (-1.1C) temps at 1am because they wanted to help,” Mr Fines said.
“There were 600 of us that found Ethan that night.”
Not only were drones used, but also a helicopter from the State Patrol and multiple local agencies participated in the search, as well agents from the FBI.
“This truely was the epitome of a community caring for its own,” Sheriff Joel Brott from the Sherburne County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement.
The Sheriff’s Office have since shared videos of Ethan himself thanking those who took part in the search.
“Thank you for finding me,” Ethan said in the video.
“You make my heart full.”
Speaking to CBS Minnesota, Ethan’s mother explained her son and Remington were inseparable.
“They’re just buddies. He’s his best buddy. They’re just like that,” Sheri Haus said.
Ms Haus explained she had put out the word, calling for people to help find Ethan, but she never expected the response from the community.
“We never thought so many people would come. We asked for help, and people came from all over,” Ms Haus told CBS Minnesota.
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