Child found after two-hour search

A missing kindergarten student from Sunnyside Elementary School was found after a two-hour search Thursday, police said.
    The 6-year-old girl was found at the bus barn at Memorial Stadium, after police officers searched businesses, buses and the homes of friends and family members.
    The girl mistakenly got in the bus line at Sunnyside instead of the parents' pick-up line, said Lt. Traci Rankin with the Dodge City Police Department.
    After school let out, the young girl decided to switch name tags with a friend.
    The name tags, which are distributed to children as a safety precaution to help keep track of students, include important information such as the child's name and the bus they are supposed to ride on, if any, said Seth Eckelman, director of communication and public information for USD 443.
    When police officers asked school bus drivers to search for the missing child, the driver of her bus did not immediately realize she was a passenger because the girl was no longer wearing her name tag.
    Both Rankin and Eckelman declined to identify the girl.
    Eckelman said several kids get lost every year during the first few days of school because they get on the wrong bus, or for other reasons, but district officials manage to get the children sorted out.
    "This is a chance to reinforce safety and improve school procedures to avoid more serious issues in the future," Eckelman said.
    School officials are scheduled to have conversations with kids and staff members to reiterate the importance of the name tags and other safety precautions, Eckelman said. 
    After a little more than two hours, the young girl was identified and reunited with her parents.
    "At least it's a happy ending," Rankin said.

Reach Cherise Forno at (620) 408-9931 or e-mail her at cherise.forno@dodgeglobe.com.