The 2-year-old boy was found by workers at Plastic Products.
A mother and daughter in the neighborhood helped entertain the boy at their home while officials worked to locate his parents.
Imelda Ayal brought him inside to keep him safe.
“The first thing I thought was to give him warmth,” she said.
She got him out of his clothes, changed his diaper and wrapped him in a towel.
Ayal’s daughter, Haide, came home to see a police car in her driveway.
“The first thing I thought was that something was wrong with my mom,” she said.
Once she was inside she realized her mother was caring for a little boy.
“The first instinct for everyone is to make sure a child is safe,” Haide said.
“The road is really busy so the priority was making sure he was safe.”
Imelda and Haide said they just gave the boy hugs, water and toys.
Prior to finding the boy’s parents, crews were going door-to-door in the area, searching for his guardians. The boy was dressed and wearing shoes, but wasn’t wearing a coat, according to fire officials. He was uninjured, but wet and cold from rain.
The parents both work third shift and were sleeping when the child escaped, fire officials said. Children Services and Vandalia police were inside the home with the parents.
This is the second report of a child found wandering today.
A girl was found this morning just before 10 a.m. in the area of Clyo Road, Center Point Drive and Silverado Drive, according to police scanner traffic.
>> Reports: Child found wandering near busy Sugarcreek Twp. street
Police were reportedly able to reach the girl’s family around 11 a.m.
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