At approximately 11:46 a.m., the Randolph County Office of Emergency Management issued an alert for a missing child who was last seen near Pleasant Avenue in Elkins.

The boy had been missing for at least an hour before the alert was sent out. A neighbor to the residence told The Inter-Mountain the boy had walked away from his home with his dog and had been gone for some time.

The Elkins Police Department and Randolph County Sheriff’s Department, along with the West Virginia Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, used every resource open to them during the search. The EPD flew drones to scour the area, while the Sheriff’s Department and WVDC deployed their K9 units.

At approximately noon, a female caller told officers she had possibly seen the boy across Leading Creek, or approximately one mile from his residence, on Ferguson Road.

Members of the Randolph County Emergency Squad search a field for a missing 4 year-old in Elkins on Wednesday. The child was safely found about one mile from his home.

At the same time, Randolph County Dog Warden Charlie Ramsey was patrolling the area in an unrelated search. Ramsey stopped his vehicle at the location where the witness was calling from. He quickly assessed the situation and then crossed Leading Creek on foot to retrieve the missing boy.

Ramsey made his way back across the creek while carrying the little boy and handed him to Corporal Daniel Pennington of the Randolph County Sheriff’s Department, who safely secured the child.

An Elkins Police Department release states the youngster appeared to have suffered minor abrasions and was transported to Davis Medical Center for evaluation. The incident is under investigation by the EPD.