A 3-year-old Montana boy has been discovered alive by authorities after going missing and being lost in the wilderness for two days.
The child was identified as Ryker Webb by the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office. Webb was last seen playing with the family dog before going missing from a property south of Troy and east of Bull Lake, after which an alarm was raised.
Authorities claim that “extremely poor weather circumstances” of rain, low visibility, and a low ceiling made the initial search for the boy difficult using drones and helicopters. This was also further complicated by extensive vegetation in the area.
The sheriff’s office said, “It was extremely difficult to get the additional air assets into the Bull Lake valley due to very poor weather conditions which consisted of rain, low visibility, and low ceiling.”
All nearby neighbors received a code red alert, asking for them to search their properties and structures.
While 53 people were actively searching for Ryker, he was discovered in Sanders County only 2.4 miles away from where he originally went missing, on Pine Ridge Road and South Fork Bull River Road.
Rescuers shared that they found Webb by a family checking on their cabin, as they had heard noises in a shed on their property.
The sheriff’s department said that Ryker was “in good spirits and apparently healthy, although hungry, thirsty, and cold,” when he was found.
Webb was taken to a nearby hospital to examine for possible injuries and has since been released.
The news report states that the reason his parents waiting over two hours to report him missing is still currently under investigation.
Utah has had its share of cases of children going missing.
In fact, several years ago, 10-year-old Malachi Bradley tapped into his survival skills after becoming separated from his family in the High Uintas. He was reunited with his family unharmed after missing for 29 hours.
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Sources: Westernjournal, Mirror, Outdoorlife
