‘I’m glad we found you, man!’: Florida deputy finds missing 81-year-old man alive in retention pond

Daniel Waterhouse was last seen Thursday

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – A missing 81-year-old man was found alive Friday in a Florida retention pond by an Orange County deputy, according to the sheriff’s office.

A video posted by the Orange County Sheriff’s Office shows one of its deputies walking up to a west Orange County retention pond -- where he found Daniel Waterhouse and pulled him from the water.

“I found him. He is in the water, and he’s moving,” Deputy Steven Jones said in the video.

Waterhouse was last seen near Holdenbury and Bramlea lanes on Thursday afternoon, according to News4JAX sister station WKMG. There was concern for his well-being due to him becoming lost or disoriented without his prescribed medication, according to the sheriff’s office.

The video shows the deputy call out to Waterhouse several times and eventually, he begins to pull the man out of the water.

“OK, buddy. You’re going to be OK, buddy. You’re OK,” he tells the man. “... I’m glad we found you, man. Thank goodness.”

Orange County Fire Rescue arrived and took Waterhouse to the hospital, according to deputies.


About the Authors

Brenda Argueta is a digital journalist who joined ClickOrlando.com in March 2021. She is the author of the Central Florida Happenings newsletter that goes out every Thursday.

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