Pinellas deputy helps reunite lost child with mom on beach
By: A Pinellas County deputy helped reunite a mother with her little girl after the child got lost on Indian Rocks Beach.
Bodycam video shows Deputy Moore coming to the young girl’s aid after her mother gave authorities the description and recent photo of her.
“I think that might be her,” Deputy Moore said as his vehicle approached a small child near the water. “I might have her here.”
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As the deputy inched closer to the girl, she waved at him, and he was able to confirm she was the missing child.
“Mom’s looking for ya,” he told the girl.
“I know,” she said.
When the deputy asked if she was okay, she replied, “I miss my mommy. I miss her.”
“You need a hug?” the deputy asked. “It’s gonna be okay. Let’s go get you to mom, alright?”
A crowd surrounded the deputies’ vehicles during the emotional reunion. The girl’s mom could be heard crying in the video.
The sheriff’s office said thanks to the photo of the girl, a unique swimsuit, good description, and a “bit of luck,” Deputy Moore was able to safely find the girl.
PCSO is also reminding parents to keep a close eye on their children while at the beach, as it’s “very easy for a child to slip away or get swept far out by a current.”
“Thankfully, this story has a happy ending,” the sheriff’s office wrote. “Any time you take your kids to a crowded location, consider taking a photo of them in their current outfits so if the unthinkable occurs — your child is lost — they can be located as quickly as possible.”