A North Carolina toddler who went missing for two days in the woods and who was miraculously found safe and sound told his rescuers that he spent time with a bear while he was roaming in the woods.

Casey Lynn Hathaway was found on January 24 healthy and "in good spirits" after he went missing from his great-grandmother's backyard on January 22, which prompted a massive search and rescue party to be launched in Craven County.

The toddler is now recovering in a hospital and has told the authorities and his parents that he spent the two days hanging out with a bear in the woods. Breanna Hathaway, Casey's aunt, posted on Facebook on January 24 evening: "Casey is healthy, smiling, and talking. He said he hung out with a bear for two days God sent him a friend to keep him safe."

While the toddler was busy making friends with a bear in the woods, almost 600 volunteers, FBI, state officials, and divers searched the woods in eastern North Carolina for any sign of the missing child, reported the Daily Mail.

Casey made national headlines when he disappeared from his great-grandmother's backyard in Ernul, North Carolina. He had been playing with his sister and his cousin when the children were called inside the home, and soon it was found that Casey wasn't there. His panicked family searched the woods behind his great-grandmother's house for 45 minutes before desperately calling 911.

The toddler was finally found on January 24 after search and rescue workers heard the sounds of his cries and eventually found him stuck in thorn bushes only a quarter of a mile from where he was last seen. According to WSOC, the authorities found the toddler after someone reported hearing "Casey crying for his mother deep in the woods" at around 9:30 pm.

The toddler was found by Chocowinity EMS Cpt. Shane Grier who proceeded to disentangle the boy from the briars that he managed to get himself stuck in. The child was found very wet, cold, and had scratches but he was otherwise healthy. The authorities believe that he may have been moving around in the time that he was missing in the woods. He was finally reunited with his family on January 24.

Craven County Sheriff Chip Hughes added in the press conference that took place the night of the rescue: "The little fella is happy and his parents are very happy as well. When he saw his little sister, had a big smile on his face." His mother Brittany Hathaway said that her son was already talking about watching Netflix.

She said: "We just want to tell everybody that we're very thankful that you took the time out to come search for Casey and prayed for him, and he's good. He is good, he is up and talking. He's already asked to watch Netflix so he's good." According to the toddler's family, Casey spent the whole of January 27 in the Carolina East Medical Center "in good condition" and was "eating Cheetos, nuggets, and watching PAW Patrol".