Drone helps police find missing child in Ocean Township woods

Police use drone to locate missing child in Ocean Township

The Ocean Township Police Department is crediting a drone for helping to safely locate a missing runaway child.

OCEAN TOWNSHIP, N.J. - The search for a child in Ocean Township came to a quick and successful end thanks to the help of some potentially lifesaving technology.

What we know:

The Ocean Township Police Department is crediting a drone for helping to safely locate a missing runaway child during freezing temperatures last week.

Video shows the drone footage that helped officers locate the child in a densely wooded area along Oyster Creek.

The police department says it currently has three FAA-licensed pilots who operate their drones.

What they're saying:

"Given the frigid conditions and heavy wooded terrain, the integration of technology played a critical role in preventing what could have escalated into a serious or potentially life-threatening situation," police said in a release.