ELLENDALE – Close to 100 emergency responders and volunteers lined the perimeter of a cornfield and walked down these rows for almost four hours looking for little D.J.

"He's not afraid of anything. He's unstoppable," said Lacey Napton, DJ's mom.

listen live watch live

Unstoppable, 18-month-old DJ Napton is as happy and energetic as ever, but his mother is still catching her breath after an afternoon of panic.

"Worst imaginable thing ever, you know, it was like the scariest moment of my life," said DJ's mom.

Around 11:30 Thursday morning, DJ wandered away from his older sisters in a cornfield near the family's property.

Lacey Napton got the phone call at work and rushed home to look for her youngest, fearing the worst.

"I was on my knees in that cornfield begging God, 'Please don't take my baby,'" said Napton.

Word of the search soon spread around sleepy Ellendale.

Even Lacey's boss at the local grocery store let most of the staff leave their shifts to help.

"In a small town like this, it's whispered twice and they're there, which is good because if you're going to have a successful outcome like this you need to get a lot of people in a cornfield quick," said Charlie Russell, Dickey Co. Director of Emergency Management.

The Emergency Management Director called in 10 different agencies in what became an air and ground search.

The cornstalks tower well above the toddler's head, so drones from a South Dakota sheriff's office and private pilots offered their services.

While dozens of do-gooders walked through more than 160 acres.

"People I see in town and don't even know were out there. It was just amazing. I can't thank everyone enough," said Napton.

It was one of those volunteers headed to the search party who found little DJ, dangerously close to a creek, and reunited him with his family.

"We're going to find him. We have to find him. And we actually found him, it was just unbelievable. I halfway expected us to out there into the night," said Napton.

DJ walked barefoot almost three quarters of a mile from his family's property.

"Exposure was the main concern. At the time, again, he was out wearing nothing but a diaper," said Russell.

He came out with little more than a few scratches, ticks, and still no fear.

The Napton family says even though the toddler might not remember his adventure, they certainly won't let him forget what it took to get him back.

"He's never going to live it down," said Napton, "And neither are the girls who were supposed to be keeping an eye on him.

Emergency responders say they didn't immediately issue an Amber Alert because they didn't think the toddler was in immediate danger.