Topsham police find two missing Woodside Elementary girls safe in woods

Topsham police found two second-grade girls safe in the woods near Woodside Elementary School early Thursday afternoon after they were reported missing from the school playground that morning. Police Chief Marc Hagan said the girls had left school grounds earlier in the day before officers located them.

The children were both 7 years old, and one report said the search lasted about three hours. The Sagadahoc County Emergency Management Agency also said the girls had been found and were safe, underscoring the rapid coordination between police and county responders as the search focused close to the school in Topsham.

The case immediately raised questions familiar to any parent at dismissal time: how two young students could move out of sight from an elementary school playground, how quickly staff noticed, and how police and school officials narrowed the search area. The fact that the girls were found in the woods suggests they had traveled beyond the school grounds but remained within reach of local responders, allowing the search to stay concentrated near Woodside Elementary rather than spreading across town.

MSAD 75 has launched reviews after the incident, a step that is likely to draw attention from families who want clearer answers about supervision, dismissal procedures and how children are accounted for once they leave classrooms or recess areas. For Topsham parents, the immediate reassurance is that both girls were recovered safely; the next concern is whether the district’s review leads to tighter procedures around playground movement and school-day accountability.

The incident drew broad regional attention, with coverage from NEWS CENTER Maine, WGME, Maine Public, the Portland Press Herald, WMTW and NBC Boston. But for Topsham, the story stayed centered on a single, familiar place: Woodside Elementary School, where a morning scare ended with two children found safe before the school day was over.