A toddler was found safe on the edge of a cornfield Monday morning after she wandered away from a southwestern Ontario farm the night before.
Brooklyn Honderich, 2, was reported missing on Sunday night in Norwich, Ont., after the girl wandered away from a farm where her family keeps livestock.
Her father was milking the cows and her mother was tending to the couple's other daughter. They noticed her disappearance at approximately 7 p.m.
Honderich's parents said they believe the young girl followed the family dog into the field, but got lost when the dog ran back out.
Canine units, volunteers and more than 25 police officers combed through the area, including cornfields surrounding the farm.
Police said most of the corn stalks were approximately two metres tall, a full metre above the girl's height.
Honderich was located at approximately 10 a.m. by a volunteer who was assisting in the search.
The volunteer, identified only as Steve, told CTV London he'd been calling her name and wasn't getting any response, so he tried a different strategy.
"I said, 'Brooklyn, do you want to go to mommy?' and I just heard a little girl crying." He followed the sound and found the disoriented girl.
Police said she was found about 24 metres into cornfield – and about one kilometre away from where she was last seen.
OPP Const. Larry Plummer told CTV News Channel that Honderich was taken to hospital as a precaution, but was believed to be safe and unharmed.
After being checked out, the toddler was seen skipping out of the hospital with her older sister.
"It was a very happy ending," Plummer said.
Honderich's father expressed his thanks that so many volunteers came out to help search.
"That's amazing. We're new in the area, so people don't even know us."
With a report CTV London and files from The Canadian Press
