A 2-year-old girl was found alive on July 16 after going missing the day prior.
Gabriella Vitale wandered away from the campsite her family was camping at on Monday around 8 a.m. as relatives were packing up.
The site was in Comins Township, Michigan.
Gabriella was found alive around 11:30 a.m. on Tuesday, officials told 9 and 10 News. The little girl wasn’t wearing shoes or pants but was “in good spirits.”
Great news!!! Gabriella has been found alive. Details to follow when available.
— @MSPNorthernMI (@mspnorthernmi) July 16, 2019
OUR BABY IS COMING HOME! Thank you again for all of your love and support. The family is still in shock but when we all get back together I will have more information. Again, GABRIELLA VITALE HAS BEEN FOUND ALIVE!
— Zack ♐ (@Burn1Central) July 16, 2019
According to WDIV, the toddler walked to a house near the campsite and the person who lives there called the police.
Michigan State Police announced the girl was found, writing in a Twitter post: “Great news!!! Gabriella has been found alive. Details to follow when available.”
A Twitter user who identified himself as one of Gabriella’s uncles also posted online, writing: “OUR BABY IS COMING HOME! Thank you again for all of your love and support. The family is still in shock but when we all get back together I will have more information. Again, GABRIELLA VITALE HAS BEEN FOUND ALIVE!”
2-year-old Gabriella Vitale being driven to hospital by ambulance in Oscoda County. Family on board @fox17 pic.twitter.com/Jh2mdjYUge
— Darren Cunningham (@darrenfox17) July 16, 2019
“JUST GOT THE WORD AND THEY HAVE FOUND GABRIELLA VITALE!!!! Nothing else even matter rights now but THEY HAVE FOUND HER ALIVE,” he said in a previous post.
“I’m not sure how my sweet baby fought through the night BUT SHE DID! GOD IS SO REAL! When I have more information I will continue to post.”
A picture from a local reporter, Darren Cunningham, showed an ambulance on the road. “2-year-old Gabriella Vitale being driven to hospital by ambulance in Oscoda County. Family on board,” he wrote.
Pictures from the police showed the search ramp up at dawn and search teams being joined by the police’s Emergency Support Team.
The police said that there were over 50 people searching in the woods along with 10 canines.
MSP Emergency Support Team members have been assigned to assist with the search, and have arrived on scene. pic.twitter.com/BFaLMCeZhM
— @MSPNorthernMI (@mspnorthernmi) July 16, 2019
The amount of volunteer Search and Rescue teams who’ve reported to the command center is remarkable. Plans are being made for overnight and first thing in the morning. Keep Gabriella and her family in your thoughts as the search continues. pic.twitter.com/49Mw29Qa8Y
— @MSPNorthernMI (@mspnorthernmi) July 16, 2019
Missing Children
There were 424,066 missing children reported in the FBI’s National Crime Information Center in 2018, according to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Under federal law, when a child is reported missing to law enforcement they must be entered into the database. In 2017, there were 464,324 entries.
“This number represents reports of missing children. That means if a child runs away multiple times in a year, each instance would be entered into NCIC separately and counted in the yearly total. Likewise, if an entry is withdrawn and amended or updated, that would also be reflected in the total,” the center noted.
The center said it assisted officers and families with the cases of more than 25,00 missing children. In those cases, 92 percent were endangered runaways, 4 percent were family abductions, 3 percent were critically missing young adults between the ages of 17 and 21, 1 percent were lost, injured, or otherwise missing children, and less than one percent were nonfamily abductions.
The center was founded by John and Revé Walsh and other child advocates in 1984 as a private, non-profit organization to serve as the national clearinghouse and resource center for information about missing and exploited children.
