It’s an outcome that family and neighbors say was nothing short of a miracle: A missing 3-year-old boy was found safe and reunited with his family.
Polk County Sheriff's Office deputies say Thomas Owen Santos and his family were visiting from New Jersey, and the little boy wandered away from a home in the area of Acorn Court in unincorporated Davenport.
The child’s father, Renan Santos, is still counting his blessings.
“It is a miracle. Yes, yes,” Santos said. “You know, to stop and think about the life, my family. Yeah, we are so happy right now.”
According to the sheriff's office, family members told deputies they had last heard and checked on Thomas around 1 a.m. Then, around 2:45 a.m., a family member noticed the front door of the home was wide open, deputies said. That's when the family discovered Thomas was not inside the home anymore.
The 3-year-old has autism, the sheriff's office said.
A call to authorities led to deputies beginning the search just before 3 a.m..
When the missing alert went out, Thomas was described as being 3 feet tall, weighing about 44 pounds, and having brown eyes and brown hair. Deputies said he was believed to be wearing blue Baby Shark pajamas.
Deputies say around 7:20 a.m. they found Thomas — he was safe and had been sleeping on a neighbor's porch less than a half-mile from where he and his family were staying. The Santos family’s prayers were answered.
Karyna Minchala, who lives on the opposite end of the same street, saw the alert, looked outside her home and saw what appeared to be a little boy sleeping on a swing chair in front of her neighbor’s house.
The sheriff’s office says when children with autism wander off they’ll often gravitate toward bodies of water. Despite the neighborhood being surrounded by lakes and canals, they say Thomas apparently stayed on the street and found a place where he felt safe and comfortable to fall back asleep.
Somehow, through the darkness, the water and the local alligators, Thomas was unharmed.
“I went over to him. And he was sleeping. And I woke him up like, very lightly so he wouldn’t get startled. I was like baby, baby, wake up,” Minchala said. “Do you want to go see your mommy? And he was like mommy? He was so happy. And I just grabbed him and waited for them to arrive.”
There were a pair of reunions. First, Thomas’s parents were brought to the scene and got to hug their son for the first time since she had gone missing. Then, again, at the house they were renting, the rest of the family shared the same sense of relief.
Shortly before 7:30 a.m. Tuesday, Sky 10 was flying over the area and appeared to show the child reunited with his family. A short time later, the sheriff's office sent out an update stating little Thomas had been found safe.
“It was very emotional to see him reunite with his parents,” said Minchala said. “Very emotional. I’m just happy that he’s safe and he didn’t seem hurt at all.
Santos added, “Just thank you. Thank you, thank you. It is, you know, I’m happy.”