Published March 10, 2015 11:00PM
Lost 7-Year-Old Rescued In Great Sand Dunes National Park
Caleb Lund survived overnight temperatures in the low 20s.
'Great Sand Dunes National Park, Colorado. [photo: NPS]'
A 7-year-old boy lost in Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve was rescued early Monday when search and rescue personnel spotted the boy walking towards the highway.
Caleb Lund had been hiking on the dunes Sunday afternoon when he became separated from his family. Lund’s family reported him missing at 6:30 p.m., triggering an all-night search effort.
Lund survived the unplanned overnight despite temperatures near 20 degrees Fahrenheit, in addition to a cold, steady wind. He wore a coat, but no shoes. “[Our] main concern was hypothermia,” Daniel Lund, Caleb’s father, told 9News.
Caleb Lund was walking near the highway when a state trooper picked him up. An ambulance transferred the boy to a local hospital, where he was released a few hours later. He is expected to make a full recovery.
Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve contains North America’s tallest dunes—some reaching 800 feet—and spans about 130 square miles.
Read more: 9News