What could have been a scary tragic incident was averted when a swarm of Benton County Deputies combed Badger Mountain to find a 9-year-old boy who had gotten separated from his grandfather.

Wednesday afternoon shortly after 5:15pm the boy was hiking with the man but on the way down, he apparently located a different trail. He headed down, but could not re-unite with his grandfather. The man called 911, but an initial search turned up nothing.

However, a short time later, the boy was found in the parking lot. He had headed there hoping someone would find him. Darkness was setting in, and sheriffs deputies say from the way the boy was dressed he could have become a victim of hypothermia quickly.  He was wearing a light jacket, and tennis shoes that had become soaked due to the snow.

Grandfather and boy were reunited, and kudos to the Benton County Sheriff's who helped located him. Officials remind people if you're going hiking Badger, or any other area, it's still cold. Although we're expecting temps in the 50s this next week, at night we're dropping into the 20s. You need to wear adequate shoes or boots and warm clothing.

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