The boy who hated oatmeal

He was just two and a half years old and he'd been wandering alone in the bush in the northwest part of Sault Ste. Marie for more than three hours.

When police finally found him after dark in a heavily wooded area, 1.9 kilometres from the home he'd walked away from, he told them he was hungry.

Constable Chris Carpinelli offered him a Quaker Oatmeal to Go cereal bar.

No way, the child said.

He was hungry, but not hungry enough to eat anything made of oatmeal.

The story of the missing, oatmeal-hating boy ended happily at 10:20 p.m. last night when he was found by a search team consisting of Constables Carpinelli, Joe Poderys, Jason Rains and Police Canine Tazer.

That's the boy, whose identity was not released by police, with Constable Rains and Tazer in this photo, taken last night at Sault Area Hospital.

The boy was in fine shape when he was found, with just a few facial scratches, but was nonetheless taken to hospital for a precautionary examination.

The whole thing might well have ended otherwise, ended in tragedy.

Last night was the coldest night so far this month, with the overnight temperature dropping to six degrees.

That's easily enough to render a two-year-old hypothermic.

The boy was wearing flip-flops when he wandered away around 7 p.m. from the house he was visiting in the area of Creek Road and Third Line. But by the time he was found, he'd lost the flip-flops and was walking bare-footed, wearing only pyjamas and a fleecy jacket.

Officers from the Sault Ste. Marie Police Service Canine Unit, Emergency Service Unit, Patrol Services and Investigation Services along with officers from the Ontario Provincial Police Emergency Response Team and Canine Unit, Sault Search and Rescue and Anishinabek Police Service conducted an intensive ground search of the area.

It was raining, which turned out to be a blessing because it softened the ground enough that the boy left a footprint, with the impressions of five toes clearly visible, that was noticed by the police searchers.

At that point, Tazer caught the boy's scent and took the trail from there.

When the boy was finally located by the searchers, he was crying.

But the sight of a friendly dog and friendly cops offering him something to eat quickly changed his mood.

Until he learned they were offering him oatmeal.

Constable Chris Carpinelli and the boy who hated oatmeal

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