Florida K-9 helps bring home missing 12-year-old girl during Elsa, deputies say

LEE COUNTY, Fla. – A Florida K-9 helped track down a missing 12-year-old girl during the severe weather then Tropical Storm Elsa brought to the state, according to the Lee County Sheriff’s Office.

The sheriff’s office said deputies were out Tuesday night searching for the missing girl and Mercy, the K-9, was assisting in the search.

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Deputies said Mercy was able to track the girl “more than half a mile through thick woods” and was able to bring her back home safely.

Elsa made landfall Wednesday morning in Taylor County, Florida, as the tropical storm brought rain bands and gusty winds, but it spared the peninsula of significant damage and widespread power outages.

Elsa has already been blamed for one death in Florida and a damaging tornado in coastal Georgia. A family was rescued Wednesday after their boat drifted off the beach in South Carolina, and forecasters say a tornado was spotted Thursday in North Carolina.