Michael WolfeChannel 2 News
A Washoe County Sheriff's Office RAVEN helicopter helped find a 3-year-old girl who wandered away from her father while he was cutting wood Monday night in Lyon County.
She was very cold but largely ok.
Tuesday, we spoke with the deputies who piloted the Regional AViation Enforcement Unit helicopter.
They said they decided to fly despite high winds because they have small children themselves. "I try to put myself in place of the parents, how helpless they must feel and how scared they are for their own kid and that's kind of the reason why we kept going was I just don't ever want to see a little kid get hurt," says Deputy Doug Russell.
Deputy Russell says he and his partner were searching for the girl in a ravine when he looked down using night vision goggles and saw her starring up at the helicopter.
They then hovered over her until ground teams could get there. "It's the best feeling you could ever hope to have. It's better than any arrest or drug bust or anything, it's just a great feeling to help someone continue on with their life."
Deputy Russell says the search and rescue crews on the ground are also invaluable to any successful mission.
