WOODBURN, Ore. -- A 1-year-old child reported missing Monday was found under the floorboards of her grandparents' home, causing the floor to have to be torn up, police said.

Woodburn police responded to a call of a missing child on Sallal Rd. at about 5 a.m. Monday after the child's father woke to find the room his daughter had been sleeping in empty, officers said.

Lawrence Higgins Jr. told officers that he went to bed in the room in the grandparents' house at about 10:30 p.m. Sunday with his three children: a 5-year-old, a 3-year-old and the missing 1-year-old.

Listen To Higgins' 911 Call

When Higgins awoke at about 4:50 a.m. he discovered that his daughter, Kate, was no longer in the room, police said. Higgins checked with the girl's grandparents who said they hadn't seen her and, after searching, they called police.

The girl's uncle, Tim Higgins, said the family feared the worst.

"We were like, 'She couldn't have went anywhere. She can't walk,' " he said. "'She's gotta be here unless somebody came in and took her.' "

About 15 officers arrived and were involved in an intense search of the house and the surrounding area but the baby could not be found, police said.

At 7:30 a.m., an officer heard the child coughing in the bedroom but still couldn't locate the girl, police said.

They realized that the child had managed to climb underneath the flooring although they couldn't figure out how the child had gotten below the floor, police said.

A hole was found but it didn't appear to be big enough for a child to fit through, officers said.

Officers then cleared the room of furniture and began to tear up the floorboards using crowbars, police said.

Officers could then see the child at the other end of the room but couldn't get her to come out although she was conscious and appeared to be OK, police said.

The rest of the flooring then had to be torn up in order to get to the girl who was finally recovered, police said.

"They found her OK, and I was just so relieved," Tim Higgins said. "It was a happy moment."

Other than being filthy, Kate was unharmed. She was taken to Silverton Hospital to be checked out and was released.

Officers said it appears that somehow the child fell off the bed, got stuck in the opening and wiggled through.

After the case was resolved, Department of Human Services workers were called in and found the grandparents' home to be unsuitable for children, Officer John Mikkola said.

The parents of the three children then voluntarily invited DHS to come to their Mill City home that was also found to be unsuitable for children, Mikkola said.

DHS workers who took the three children into custody said the homes were just too dirty, Mikkola said.

Missing Girl, 1, Found Under Floorboards

View Photos Of The Child And Torn Up Room