Heat-seeking drone finds missing 6-year-old Minnesota boy in cornfield

The boy, named Ethan, had been missing for almost 10 hours.

A 6-year-old Minnesota boy who had been missing for nearly 10 hours was spotted safe in a cornfield thanks to a drone, authorities said.

The boy, named Ethan, had run off to play with his dog near his home in Palmer Township when he disappeared Tuesday night around 4 p.m., according to the Sherburne County Sheriff's Office.

More than 600 people and numerous law enforcement agencies came together to help search for Ethan on the ground, but it was the technology in the sky that spotted the boy.

Ethan was seen, with his dog Remington, around 1:50 a.m. Wednesday lying down in a cornfield a little more than a mile east of his home, Sheriff Joel Brott said in a statement.

The drone used heat-seeking technology to find the boy, officials said.

When first responders reached Ethan, he was cold but otherwise in good health, according to Brott.

Authorities thanked the community for coming together to help find the boy.

"To see the outpouring of support in such a short time period to come out and help find this boy and his dog is heartwarming," Brott said.

Ethan told KMSP that Remmie kept him safe and he thanked all who came out to help look for him.