Missing boy, 13, found safe following hours-long search in Williams amid heavy snowfall

WILLIAMS, Ariz. (3TV/CBS 5) — A 13-year-old boy who has been missing since early Thursday afternoon has been found safe. Williams police said an employee of Canyon Gateway RV Park found Gryffyn Edens wandering around the park around 9 a.m. He has since been evaluated by medical personnel and police say he seems to be in good health.

Crews had been searching for Edens since Thursday evening after he left his home earlier that afternoon. Williams police say the boy’s family reported him missing around 6 p.m. after he didn’t return home early Thursday afternoon. A hotel near the family’s home captured video surveillance of Gryffyn climbing down his front porch near 3rd Street and Edison Avenue and walking north toward Cureton Park just after 1 p.m.

Police say Gryffyn is a high-functioning, special needs child who has a speech impediment and hearing loss. The search grew in scope as snow fell through the night, including Williams police officers and firefighters, the Coconino County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue Team, deputies and area residents. Williams police also asked that volunteers search areas around their own homes and any neighborhood buildings where someone could hide or escape the weather.

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