A 3-year-old boy from the Troy area who had been missing for almost 48 hours during a thunderstorm was safely found on Sunday afternoon following a multi-agency search response that began on June 3, according to Lincoln County Sheriff Darren Short.

Property owners found Ryker Webb in their generator shed on Pine Ridge Road off South Fork Bull River Road in Sanders County, about two miles south of his home near Troy in the Bull Lake area, Short said.

The couple who found Webb had traveled to their property from Eureka after a Code Red Alert was sent to neighbors about the search. They told authorities the little boy was frightened and in a state of shock. After bringing Webb into the cabin to warm him up and give him food and water, Short arrived to transport him to meet Bull Lake Volunteer Ambulance responders, who took him to Cabinet Peaks Medical Center for a medical evaluation.

Short said local temperatures ranged from the mid-40s to the low 60s while Webb was missing, and he believes the youngster took shelter in the shed before the thunderstorm moved through on Friday night.

“He was very, very scared,” Short said. “He was with a group of people he had never met before, and when I asked him if he wanted to see his mom and dad, his eyes lit up.”

“He was doing remarkably well for a little boy who had been out there for two days,” Short added.

According to Short, Webb was outside playing with the family dog on Friday afternoon when his father stepped inside for a moment. When he returned, his son and the dog were gone. As his parents searched and called for them, the dog came back, but Webb did not.

As the parents continued calling for Webb, a concerned neighbor contacted authorities at approximately 4:52 p.m., and a search-and-rescue (SAR) operation was launched.

Short said Webb had likely been missing for at least two hours before the call, and responders immediately began a ground search. There were 53 personnel actively searching the area, including multiple sheriff’s offices, several dog teams, multiple SAR organizations, Two Bear Air, the Montana Air National Guard, and many other agencies, including teams from Spokane and Idaho.

“It was absolutely a huge response,” Short said.

Short said that because the search involved a young child, the department brought in many additional resources.

Because of poor visibility, air resources were not immediately available, but the Flathead County Sheriff’s Office launched a drone to help cover the area, while Montana Air National Guard helicopters flew in from Helena. Ground searchers, ATVs, drones, a boat unit on Bull Lake, and dog teams all maintained a steady search effort.

Local volunteers with cat hounds also joined the search, along with 40 volunteers from a Sanders County church organization.

“His parents were incredibly thankful and relieved, just like everyone involved in the search,” Short said.

Source: Flathead Beacon