DUXBURY, Mass. — An 8-year-old Marshfield boy who went missing on Tuesday night has been found alive after spending the night in the woods of a nearby town, authorities announced Wednesday morning.
Callahan Pierce, 8, wandered away from a home on Moraine Street in Marshfield around 7 p.m. Tuesday and spent the night in the woods near Hounds Ditch Lane in Duxbury, according to Marshfield Police Chief Phillip Tavares.
“It appears he had been traveling through the woods all night long,” Tavares said at a morning news conference. “He hunkered down during the night. That’s why the infrared didn’t spot him. ”When the sun came up, he started traveling again.”
Tavares noted residents in the neighborhood spotted Pierce, and that a local homeowner was able to coax him out of the woods with food.
“This was a very scary situation, but it has a happy ending,” Tavares said at the news conference.
Pierce was ultimately taken to the hospital with suspected hypothermia after being located about 12 hours later.
Tavares said that Pierce was playing outside with another child in the company of a babysitter when he walked away, prompting a massive search that included drones, K9s, a helicopter, law enforcement on the ground, and community volunteers.
Hounds Ditch Lane is about 3 miles away from Moraine Street.
An investigation remains ongoing.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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