JACKSONVILLE BEACH, Fla. – A local family is still shaken up after their 4-year-old daughter wandered away from her day camp, only to have a stranger find her and call police.
According to Jacksonville Beach Police, 4-year-old Sophie Navarro wandered away from Seaside Play Garden sometime after 9 a.m. Tuesday, and was found walking on the sidewalk right next to 3rd Street.
Wednesday her family is relieved that she was found before something bad could happen, but they are still very upset, wondering how something like this could even happen?
"When I got her on the phone, the first thing I said was, "Please tell me she's OK." That's all I wanted to know. Was she OK?" Jennifer Navarro, Sophie Navarro's mother, said.
The owner of a nearby hair salon happened to look outside and spotted Sophie Navarro walking down the sidewalk in her bathing suit. She immediately called her over and took care of her as she waited for police to arrive.
Jennifer and Eddie Navarro are so thankful to have their daughter home safe and sound. Especially knowing what could have happened to her, had the right person not stepped in to help.
"Words cannot describe how I feel about this woman. How thankful I am that she found my daughter, and not somebody else acting foolish," Jennifer Navarro said.
For the Navarros, the worst part was not getting any answers from the school about how this happened in the first place.
"No answers. They said, "I don't know. We don't know how this happened. This has never happened before." I immediately hung up the phone," Eddie Navarro said.
The school sent News4Jax a statement that reads in part:
"We sincerely apologize and have formed an action plan which includes terminating the camp counselors, hiring a safety consultant and installing a new security alarm. We will continue to assess the situation and revise our plan as we learn more."
Now that they know their little girl is safe, the Navarros wanted to share their lesson with other parents. When it comes to choosing a summer camp or any kind of day program make an informed decision, and talk to your kids.
"I would say please talk to your children about safety procedures. Put on their person your name and phone number so if they're ever lost they have that information. Unfortunately, we didn't provide that for our daughter," Jennifer Navarro said.
The Navarros also said that with everything that has happened they have decided that Sophie will not return to Seaside. For now, they plan to keep her home.
According to John Harrell with DCF the school has not had any serious violations before this, and the Jacksonville Beach Police Department said they had never had any complaints.