Skip to content

Helicopter finds missing girl asleep in field in Devon

The National Police Air Service's South West helicopter located the girl in the pitch dark using their infrared camera system.

A six-year-old girl who went missing was found asleep in a field near her home by a police helicopter.

The disappearance of the girl in north Devon sparked a large search also involving police dog handlers.

Police said officers were called out at about 21:30 BST on Saturday after the child was reported missing.

The National Police Air Service's (NPAS) South West helicopter said it was dispatched to assist in the search and found her at about 22:40.

The NPAS released video of her discovery on social media after it helped bring a happy resolution to her "terrified parents".

The girl went missing in the Umberleigh area.

The NPAS said she was "located in the pitch dark by our helicopter crew using their infrared camera system".

It added: "She was found asleep in a field, over a half-a-mile [0.8km] away from her home."

Allow Twitter content?

This article contains content provided by Twitter. We ask for your permission before anything is loaded, as they may be using cookies and other technologies. You may want to read  and  before accepting. To view this content choose ‘accept and continue’.

The service said the situation was "every parent's worst nightmare".

It said finding the girl saw a "massive team effort, from the police control room, the police officers on the ground and the officers in the air to get this child home safely to her terrified parents".

Devon and Cornwall Police confirmed officers were called "after a young child was reported missing from a rural property".

The force said officers "attended and carried out an area search, along with the police helicopter and a dog unit".

It added: "The child was located safe and well in a field ... by the helicopter, working with officers on the ground.

"She was taken to hospital to be checked over as a precaution."

line

Follow BBC News South West on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Send your story ideas to [email protected].