3 children found safe and alive in Terrebonne, north of Montreal

Terrebonne police said Friday afternoon that three children who went missing at around 9:30 a.m. have been found safe and alive.

“We all cried when my mother texted us they were found,” Volodymyr Martin, the older brother of two of the missing boys, said.

According to police, the boys were hiding in the woods, about three kilometers away from their home.

“I decided to send two firefighters to go along the creek,” Guy Lapointe, President of the Quebec Search and Rescue Association said.

“They went there and they found them.”

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The police are treating the situation as a runaway case, although Martin said the kids thought they were going on an adventure in the woods and got lost.

Earlier in the day, the boys’ mother had briefly left her Terrebonne home – about 25 kilometres north of Montreal – to get the mail.

When she returned, the children were gone. She then called police.

Volunteers -residents from around the area that police said “where too many to count”- searched the grounds by bike, by foot, even by horse.

“I came with my two dogs,” said Melanie Joubert who came from La Plaine.

“They hear better than us, they smell better than us, so maybe they can help find the kids.”

The boys, two brothers Maxim and Vladislav Martin are ages 8 and 9 years-old.

Their friend, Maxim, is 7.

Martin, who is an Ukrainian immigrant, was thankful for police’s efforts and said he couldn’t believe how his Canadian neighbours stepped in to help without flinching.

“They could’ve stayed inside, watching T.V. but they came out” Martin said.

“That is really nice, thank you.”