A desperate search for 5-year-old Saylor Hayes in Georgetown County, South Carolina, came to a heartbreaking end Monday morning after authorities recovered the child’s body from the water near the area where she was last seen.

Saylor had been reported missing Sunday after she wandered away from the rental home where she was staying with her family in the Hagley community of Pawleys Island. The Georgetown County Sheriff’s Office quickly launched a large-scale search, calling on residents to help locate the young girl.

Saylor was nonverbal, and authorities urged anyone who encountered her to approach calmly and gently. She was described as about 3 feet 6 inches tall, with blonde hair and blue eyes. At the time she disappeared, she was wearing a light blue one-piece bathing suit and a pink-and-white lanyard around her ankle.

The search continued through the night and involved numerous agencies and community members. Deputies, K-9 teams, boats, divers, drones and aircraft searched the surrounding land, shoreline and waterways. Authorities also used Project Lifesaver technology in an effort to locate Saylor.

Sheriff Carter Weaver said crews were determined to continue searching until Saylor was found. Neighbors also joined law enforcement in searching the surrounding area, while residents were asked to check security-camera footage that might provide information about her disappearance.

On Monday morning, agents with the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources located Saylor in the water near the area where she had last been seen. Authorities reported that her body was recovered at approximately 9:45 a.m.

The news brought a devastating conclusion to a search that had drawn together law enforcement agencies, emergency responders and members of the local community. The Georgetown County Sheriff’s Office expressed condolences to Saylor’s family and thanked the many people who took part in the effort to find her.

The investigation and circumstances surrounding the child’s death remain under review by authorities. The community now faces the heartbreaking task of remembering a young child whose disappearance prompted an extraordinary search effort.