Virginia Toddler Found Safe After Massive Search, Including FBI Involvement

A two-year-old girl who went missing from her home in Cumberland County, Virginia, was found safe on Friday afternoon following a large-scale search effort that included the FBI. Bridget Maeve Zeigler, 2, had wandered away from her residence on Thursday evening.

The Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office announced her safe recovery on Friday, noting that the search utilized aviation and K9 units. The Virginia State Police had reported that Zeigler was last seen around 6 p.m. on Thursday. She was reportedly wearing an orange dress, a blue coat, and white sneakers when she disappeared from the vicinity of Hidden Valley Road, an area bordering dense woods and state forest land.

Authorities were alerted to the toddler's disappearance within an hour of her going missing. A CODI alert, designed to inform the public about missing or endangered children, was issued by Thursday evening. Search teams described Zeigler as a white female, approximately 2 feet tall, weighing 30 pounds, with short brown hair and blue eyes. Hunters in the area were asked to check any trail camera footage for potential sightings.

The circumstances surrounding Zeigler’s disappearance and her condition upon being found were not detailed by officials. The search involved multiple agencies, including the Cumberland Sheriff’s Office, the FBI, the Virginia Department of Emergency Management, the Virginia State Police, and various other law enforcement, fire, and rescue departments.