Miami County Sheriff’s Deputy and drone pilot Justin Miller watches the thermal image on the screen of his drone as he directs other deputies and Piqua police officers to the location of a missing juvenile in a wooded area north of Piqua Junior High School on Wednesday evening.
Mike Ullery | Miami Valley Today
PIQUA — A missing juvenile prompted a search of a wooded area in Piqua on Wednesday evening.
Miami County Dispatchers received a call of a distraught juvenile running away around 8 p.m. Piqua police along with firefighters from the Piqua Fire Department and Miami County Sheriff’s Deputies began searching the area around Piqua Junior High School and a large wooded area to the north, between the school and County Road 25-A.
A command post was set up at the Grace United Methodist Church parking lot as the search through the darkened woods progressed.
The sheriff’s office utilized one of its drones that carries a thermal imaging camera, and a K-9 unit from Tipp City police was requested.
Shortly after 9 p.m., drone pilot/Deputy Justin Miller spotted a heat signature against a tree. Miller was able to direct three officers, using their heat signatures, to the juvenile’s location at 9:21 p.m.
The juvenile was transported by Piqua Fire Department medics to a local hospital to be checked out.
Lt. Jeremy Weber of the Piqua Police Department commented that the drone “is such a helpful piece of equipment” in locating a missing person.
Weber offered thanks to the Miami County Sheriff’s Office, Piqua Fire Department, and Tipp City Police department for their assistance in locating the juvenile.
