Tennessee Highway Patrol Aviation Unit Locates Missing Henderson County Child

NASHVILLE – The Tennessee Highway Patrol (THP) Aviation Unit late Sunday located and helped rescue a missing child who had wandered away from her home. The Henderson County Sheriff’s Office requested the assistance of the THP to perform a non-criminal search shortly after the two year old girl was reported missing.

Trooper Lee Russell, a THP aviation pilot, was advised the child went missing sometime between 6:45 and 7:00 p.m. from her residence on Doe Creek Road in Sardis, Tenn. According to the sheriff’s office, the child had been known to follow her dogs but this was the first time she had ever gone missing. The sheriff’s office had three K-9 teams headed to the scene but had not yet arrived.

Knowing time was against Trooper Russell, he immediately flew to the old Lexington Airport where he picked up Trooper Tracy Tyler to expedite the search. Troopers Russell and Tyler then flew to the area of the missing child’s residence. Upon arrival the troopers began to operate their Forward Looking Infrared (F.L.I.R.) camera as they performed a search of the area. During the search several targets were located. Since the troopers were searching for such a young child, a low altitude flight pattern was conducted while utilizing a searchlight tactic to rule out the other targets.

After approximately 30 minutes into the search, the troopers observed a possible target in a harvested cornfield that appeared to be a child. This target was approximately 535 yards from the residence of the missing child and also matched a possible direction the child may have taken. As the troopers utilized their searchlight they located what appeared to be a child kneeling down and bent over at the waist. The target was mostly obscured from the remaining cornstalks. However the troopers could see that it was an object that didn’t belong. While utilizing the spotlight, Trooper Russell notified ground search crews of the location and advised them that he would keep the target illuminated with the searchlight.

Members of the Henderson County Rescue Squad and Sheriff’s Office traveled to the location where they confirmed that it was the child and that she appeared in good health. They transported her back to her residence where emergency medical services personnel could provide care. The ground units advised that she was curled up and shaking severely when they got to her. However, with the exception of a few splinters in her feet, the child was in good condition.

A photo of the child and F.L.I.R. screenshots are attached. (The man closest to the crosshairs can be seen carrying the child in both FLIR Snapshots.)

The Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security’s (www.TN.Gov/safety) mission is to serve, secure, and protect the people of Tennessee.

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