A Dowagiac woman who went missing briefly Tuesday afternoon was found alive and well by local authorities, according to news release from the Cass County Sheriff’s Office.

Debra Reanor, 55, was found by police at approximately 10:40 p.m. Tuesday evening after a Michigan State Police K9 unit tracked her to cornfield outside of Dowagiac, near the intersection of Marcellus Highway and Flanders Street.

First responders stretchered the woman from the field, where crews with Pride Care Ambulance transported her to Lakeland Hospital in St. Joseph for treatment of minor injuries sustained during her trek from a residence on Marcellus.

The search began after deputies with the sheriff’s office responded to a missing person’s call that was made to Cass County Central Dispatch at around 5:30 p.m. Police discovered that Reanor, who has a number of medical issues, had walked away the Wayne Township residence after telling her caregivers she was leaving, which was an unusual action for her, said Undersheriff Richard Behnke.

Authorities were also told that Reanor would soon require medical attention if not located soon.

The sheriff’s office, along with crews with the Wayne Township Fire Department, began to coordinate an effort to locate the missing woman. Officers began searching for Reanor by vehicle, and began conducting a door-to-door search within the area. A Child is Missing was called to assist in getting word out to people in the area by telephone. While some leads were obtained from the searches, they did not result in finding the missing woman.

A call was made for assistance to other local agencies, with the Dowagiac Fire Department, Dowagiac Police Department, Michigan State Police Niles Post, Pokagon Band Tribal Police Department, Dowagiac Fire Department and Civilian Emergency Response Team contributing personnel and equipment to the search effort.

K9 units with the sheriff’s office and state police were also dispatched to the scene, along with a helicopter from the MSP Aviation Unit.

The Cass County Sheriff’s Office would like to thank all of the citizens that assisted in this event by either calling in information or assisting emergency personnel with food or drink. It assisted in making the operation a success.