Missing Kimberley boy found clinging to a tree

The search for a boy missing from the Aboriginal community of Warmun in the Kimberley has ended positively after Bryce Gallagher, 6, was found holding on to a tree branch  as floodwaters rose on the weekend.

Flash flooding in the region with 26 millimetres of rain falling, saw areas cut off by rising waters after the boy’s mother had noticed he had wandered from the family home.

“I really thought I was going to lose my little grandson,” Madeline Purdie told the ABC.

After hours of searching, the boy’s footsteps were located and those of three dogs who had gone with him.

Mum, Gran and Bryce all safe. Photo:Madeline Purdie

Once the dogs were found on an island surrounded by rising waters, searchers then look for Bryce.

The boy was then discovered trying to whistle totem, clutching a branch as the waters swirled around. Bryce luckily only had a few scratches.

Kimberley police superintendent John Hutchison told the ABC it was “a real team effort” to find the boy.

The boy’s family have thanked everyone involved in the search for their help.