A police officer’s typical responsibilities include maintaining the peace and enforcing the law.

They also protect citizens and conduct investigations into crimes.

However, HowStuffWorks discussed the difference between police and troopers. They note that “while they share similar functions, state troopers are meant to have more horsepower than the average police station.”

This leads us into our story.

Officers knew they were under a lot of time pressure.

A two-year-old girl had gone missing in South Bristol, New York.

It’s one thing to go missing during the day. But when night falls and the temperature drops, it becomes even more dangerous.

The man in charge of the search party was a New York State Trooper named Brian Hotchkiss.

He was well aware of the gravity of the situation.

“These missing kids, it can go really bad. It’s time-sensitive depending on the time of year, so although it was a nice day the temperature was dropping,” Brian told to News 8 WROC.

He and the search party knocked on doors throughout the neighborhood. But no one seemed to know where the little girl had gone.

As night fell, Brian decided to start climbing the mountain.

The area was only a half-hour drive from the girl’s house.

Brian was ‘winded’ by the time he got to the top of the mountain – which took half an hour. At first, all he could see was the green and brown of the trees.

However, he noticed a pink dot in the distance.

The pink speck remained motionless on a rock near the stream. As he began to run over, Brian’s heart rate dropped. He hoped the child was still alive.

“I followed the stream and I located the child, she was lying on her stomach on a rock, and I ran over as quick as possible and I saw her arm move and I knew she was alive and my heart just dropped. I was so excited, I ran up and she hugged me immediately, she wouldn’t let go,” Brian recalled.

The little girl appeared relieved to have been found.

She clung to Brian as if her life depended on it.

And it did in a lot of ways.

It could have been a very different story if Brian had not decided to lead his search party up the mountain.

When Brian arrived, the girl was shivering.

Another trooper wrapped her in his uniform to keep her warm.

She was then taken away in an ambulance to be checked over. Fortunately, the hospital gave her the all-clear and she was able to return home.

Brian was left to ponder the day’s dramatic events.

“I still can’t get that out of my head, her turning over and looking at me and throwing her hands up in the air. I’ll never forget that,” he shared.

The story of the little girl’s rescue was shared on news outlets across America. People praised Brian’s quick thinking and action in the YouTube comments section.

One person said,

“Thank you very much for your service, sir, and be careful out there. We can’t afford to lose you.”

Another commented saying, “Heartwarming situation…. Good Job Trooper!”

Watch the video below!

Please SHARE this with your friends and family!

Sources: YouTube – News 8 WROC, HowStuffWorks