SENECA, Mo. —
Ryle Smith could not have had two better companions with him on Friday night.
Smith, 6, of Seneca, followed two of the family’s dogs, Baxter and Bella, into the woods behind his parents’ house Friday evening, and became disoriented and lost as it grew dark.
It prompted a five-hour search that put Ryle back in his parents arms at 10 p.m., thanks to his four-legged friends and efforts from search parties from all over the area.
When Ryle was found, his two dogs were lying on top of him in a ditch, sharing their warmth with him as temperatures dipped into the low 20s.
“I wasn’t scared, I was just really cold,” Ryle said from his home Saturday. “Bella was my guard dog and Baxter was next to me the whole time.”
Ryle was reported missing by his parents, Ryan and Holly Smith, after he didn’t return from playing near his house shortly before 6 p.m. Friday. After checking the woods near the house, Ryan Smith contacted authorities.
“I was nervous because it was getting dark and some of the area in the woods can be really dangerous,” he said. “He was outside with the dogs, and we didn’t see or hear from either of them.”
Emergency officials from the Joplin, Seneca and the Redings Mill fire departments, in addition to the Newton County Rescue and Recovery team and the Newton County Sheriff’s Department, descended on the area to search for Ryle, Sheriff Ken Copeland said.
“We got into action quickly, and that’s what helped us find him,” Copeland said. “The Highway Patrol chopper was even in the area with infrared to see if they could help. It really was an areawide search that got him home.”
Ryle was found without his shoes, cuts on parts of his body and holes in his clothes from his excursion in the woods.
Ryan Smith said his son followed the dogs into the woods and became lost when the sun set. Despite his appearance, Ryle was released from Freeman Hospital in Joplin with no injuries, his father said.
“When we got to him at the ambulance, he was wrapped up like a mummy,” Ryan Smith said. “I hugged him and told him I loved him. I was just glad to have my son back.”
Baxter is a large boxer that has been with the family for more than 10 years, while Bella, a mixed Labrador, was a recent addition to the family over Christmas.
“They both were incredible in the way that they protected him,” Ryan Smith said. “They wouldn’t have left him for anything. You can’t ask for more in a dog than that.”
He also said he was extremely thankful for the way that everyone in the area sprang into action.
“It amazes me how quick everyone came out to look for my son,” Ryan Smith said. “An hour after word got out, you couldn’t get anywhere close to the driveway. I still haven’t got to meet the men who actually found Ryle, but I just want them to know how thankful we are.”
Copeland said Saturday he was not sure of the identities of the rescuers who found Ryle.
Local News
Related Photos
-
Ryle Smith, 6, spent Saturday afternoon close to home with Baxter (left) and Bella. The youngster was lost in the woods near Seneca on Friday night, prompting a five-hour search. Ryle was found in a ditch with both dogs, which were keeping the child warm. Globe | Ryan Richardson GLOBE | RYAN RICHARDSON
Discussion
Baxter, Bella protect child lost in woods near Seneca
- Local News
-
-
Missouri Southern art students to raise funds for Moore, Okla.
Throughout periods of historical change, art has always played an important role, Kahlief Steele contends. “A lot of art came out of the Renaissance period, and the same thing happened after the Great Depression,” said Steele, an art major who will start his junior year this fall at Missouri Southern State University.
-
City manager: CID owes Neosho $158,257
The Big Spring Plaza Community Improvement District owes Neosho $158,257, City Manager Troy Royer told the Neosho City Council on Tuesday night. Royer had filed an open-records request under the Missouri Sunshine Law with officers of the CID he could identify, which he had said wasn’t easy.
-
Ground to be broken for Pittsburg project; 10 homes planned for moderate-income residents
City and Pittsburg Area Chamber of Commerce officials will participate in a groundbreaking ceremony at 11 a.m. today at Lincoln Square. An open house also will be held in the home under construction in the new development.
-
Mike Pound: Office space no place for litter box
I knew my wife was lying when she told me to relax. “It won’t be that bad,” she said. “Relax. I’m sure all writers have had to put up with something like this at least once in their career.”
-
Donations helping JHS music programs rebuild after tornado
Building a repertoire for the Joplin School District’s orchestra program is a challenge for Kylee VanHorn. “Every time I get on the Internet and look at the music sites, there are so many pieces I want to purchase, and I just don’t have the money,” VanHorn said.
-
Defendant chooses not to testify in Miami murder trial
Donna Shirley testified Wednesday that Dustin Boggs had blood all over his hands and clothes when she encountered him in the parking lot of a Wal-Mart store the afternoon Danyel Borden was killed.
-
Former Jasper County official's sentencing slated today in fraud charges
Rita Hunter, former Jasper County public administrator, is to be sentenced today in federal court in Springfield. Hunter, who held office from January 2005 through December 2008, pleaded guilty last November to document fraud, a charge related to illegal obtaining of federal benefits.
-
MSSU board approves settlement agreement with fired president
Bruce Speck, whose contract as president of Missouri Southern State University was terminated last week, will receive the equivalent of a year’s salary as well as housing and health insurance benefits through the end of the year.
-
Mindenmines man charged in first-degree assault case
Barton County Prosecutor Steven Kaderly on Wednesday charged a Mindenmines man with first-degree felony assault of another man, who was in serious condition at a Joplin hospital. The felony charge against Charles Lee Kerby, 32, alleges that on Sunday he assaulted John Bryant, 58, causing serious physical injuries. The assault happened in the 800 block of Tucker Street in Mindenmines.
-
State auditors start review of Jasper County Circuit Court
Workers for the office of Thomas Schweich, Missouri state auditor, have started an audit of Jasper County Circuit Court. The state review was described as “routine” by Spence Jackson, a spokesman for Schweich’s office.
- More Local News Headlines
-
Missouri Southern art students to raise funds for Moore, Okla.
