DUBBERLY, La. -- Peyton Saintignan has been found. Webster Parish sheriff’s Maj. Bobby Igo III said the 10-year-old was found by searchers about 1 p.m. in a wooded area near her Magnolia Road residence in Dubberly. She was reported missing from the home around midnight Tuesday. Igo said Saintignan has been checked by emergency medical personnel and appears to be in good shape but will be further evaluated. "She is safe, she's located and she's good," Igo said. State Trooper Justin Wardell was the one who found Peyton as he and other law enforcement personnel from multiple agencies were conducting a grid search in the heavily wooded area near her home. They spread out about 50 yards apart and started walking. "I just got lucky. I didn't do anything special. I was just simply on the line that she happened to be on," Wardell said. We got into some real thick areas, some thorns and just looking through the brush, kinda getting down on my hands and knees about to crawl through some thorns. Just happened to see the outline of her shirt. She was wearing the tie-dye shirt they originally reported. And she was asleep. She seems to be ok. No major injuries, just some scratches, stuff like that that you get in the woods. But overall, after we woke her up, she was alert. EMS personnel did check her out." The sheriff's office is conducting an investigation into Peyton's second disappearance. A source tells KTBS the state Department of Children and Family Services is also involved.
ORIGINAL STORY:
DUBBERLY, La. - A search is underway for Peyton Saintignan, 10, who was reported missing from her home in Dubberly. This is the second time the youngster has disappeared in less than a month. In a previous incident covered by KTBS, Saintignan vanished around midnight Sept. 12, and was found within hours. Searchers utilized drone assistance to find the girl, the footage of which went viral. The girl was found asleep in the woods about a mile from her home. Currently, Saintignan was reported missing just after midnight from her home on Magnolia Road in Dubberly Tuesday. She was last seen wearing a yellow shirt and yellow shorts, according to the social media posts by Webster Parish Sheriff's Office. Law enforcement officers from several agencies, including dog-tracking teams, are searching wooded areas in the vicinity of her home. Sheriff Jason Parker is requesting any people who may want to assist in the search for the girl to refrain from entering the wooded areas. According to Parker, "We're using dog tracking teams and the scent could be disturbed by persons entering the search area." Anyone with information on Saintignan's whereabouts should call 911.