MARQUETTE COUNTY (WWJ) - Authorities in the Upper Peninsula had to fight approaching darkness and the elements as they raced to find a runaway teen on Tuesday— but footprints in the snow led officials right to the boy.
The Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR) said dispatch was notified around 4:25 p.m. that a 14-year-old boy went missing from his home along Marquette County Road 545 North in West Branch Township.
Two Michigan conservation officers, Officer John Kamps and probationary Officer Steve Sajtar, heard the call for help and immediately began searching for the boy.
Kamps and Sajtar discovered footprints and tracked them, heading south along County Road 545. After a short distance, they were met by a person out walking, who told them a boy matching the missing teen's description had passed by a few hours earlier -- heading east on Maple Rd.
The footprints continued for over a mile, until Maplewood Rd came to a dead end.
At that point, the pair continued into the swampland surrounding Foster Creek, where the snow was thigh-deep.
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"With below freezing temperatures and only a couple hours of daylight left, time was of the essence," Sajtar said. "We knew the boy was likely cold and wet from the swamp."
Just after 6 p.m., Kamps and Sajtar found the missing teen sitting on a snowbank along Foster Creek, wearing only a shirt and pajama pants.
He had removed his wet shoes and socks after falling into the creek, then wrapped his bare feet in his jacket to keep them warm.
"I’m freezing cold," the boy told the officers.
Officers conducted a brief first-aid exam and noted the teen's feet were pale and numb.
Kamps gave the boy put on his feet. After making sure the boy could walk, Sajtar helped the boy put his shoes back on so they could hike out of the woods.
The teen needed several breaks, but they were able to walk back through the swampland to Foster Creek Drive, where an ambulance met them.
EMS took the him to UP Health System in Marquette where he was treated for cold exposure.
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