Missing six-year-old found after 16 hours lost in Victorian bushland
A boy living with autism has been reunited with his family after spending 16 hours lost in the Dandenong Ranges in Victoria.
Parsa, aged six, is non-verbal. He was at a family Easter gathering at a play space on Olinda Monbulk Road when he wandered off at 4pm yesterday.
Friends and family searched frantically for him, however he could not be found, so they reported him as missing to Victoria Police.
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A boy living with autism has been reunited with his family after spending 16 hours lost in the Dandenong Ranges in Victoria. 9News
A large-scale search operation was launched immediately to locate him, with 200 people joining in the search.
His parents had an AirTag on him which last pinged at midnight, after the six-year-old left it in the bush.
After a sleepless night, Parsa's parents got the news they'd been waiting for about 8am.
He was found more than 8 kilometres away by local mountain bike rider Asher Shinkfield.
"He was fairly calm, he was really tired, obviously a long night, he was just sitting on the ground," Shinkfield said.
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Parsa was found more than 8 kilometres away by local mountain bike rider, Asher Shinkfield. 9News
Police had tried everything they could to coax him out of his hiding place, including playing his favourite song on the loud speakers, which is Hickory Dickory Dock. 9News
The 18-year-old stayed with the youngster until help arrived.
"It feels great, it's heartwarming," he said.
"You don't get to do this kind of thing very often, so just right place, right time. It feels great."
But no one was more grateful than Parsa's dad.
"The community here is just amazing, wonderful people, amazing. I don't know what to say," Parsa's dad told locals after hugging his son's rescuer.
Police are calling the find an "Easter miracle".
He was at a family Easter gathering at the play space on Olinda Monbulk Road when he wandered off at 4pm. Google Maps
"It's not that often that I get to stand here with a smile on my face at the end of the day," Knox acting senior sergeant Mel Gostimir said.
Police had tried everything they could to coax him out of his hiding place, including playing his favourite song on the loudspeakers, which is Hickory Dickory Dock.
Without a scratch on him, Parsa was checked over by paramedics, had plenty of orange juice and an apple before being taken home for some much-needed rest.
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