Nante was missing for two days in the woods before a search party found him. Photo: Hurley School District
When the Niemi family decided to go camping at Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park in Michigan, they likely thought it was going to be a wholesome weekend of hotdogs and marshmallows. Instead, though, Nante Niemi, an eight-year-old boy, disappeared at around 1 p.m. on Saturday afternoon. Miraculously, he was found on Monday after spending a full two days alone in the wilderness.
“He had braved the elements by taking shelter under a log where he was ultimately found,” a press release from the Michigan State Police read.
According to reports, Niemi went missing after he had gone to gather firewood. When the family realized he’d disappeared, they alerted authorities. Immediately, over 150 search and rescue personnel hit the ground in a desperate attempt to find him. The search covered a 40 square mile area, much of it remote and steep.
Thankfully, at 1:30 p.m. on Monday, rescuers found the boy, who had used branches and leaves to keep himself warm on Saturday and Sunday night. He avoided eating or drinking anything for fear of getting sick, but he did have a few handfuls of snow. The search party found the boy sheltering under a log, apparently no worse for wear.
“If you didn’t know he was in the woods for two days, you wouldn’t know,” Eli Talsma, who assisted in the search, told ABC News. “I mean, he was just normal. Nante was just walking around. He was talking. He was asking questions. He said he wasn’t hungry. He was perfectly fine, but we did give him a Cliff Bar and a banana and some water.”
The boy has been reunited with his family and is expected to recover fully from his ordeal.
