Girl gets back special teddy bear lost in Fort Lauderdale airport shooting
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Courtney Gelinas talks with the news media after being reunited with her bear Rufus, at the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2017, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
Yards from where workers are finishing the cleanup from the Fort Lauderdale airport shooting, a girl was reunited with the teddy bear she left behind while fleeing.
Courtney Gelinas smiled as Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport spokesman Greg Meyer opened the trunk of his SUV Tuesday to reveal Rufus, the teddy bear the 10-year-old from Windsor, Ontario, had received from her dying grandfather a decade ago. When Meyer handed her Rufus, she held the bear tight.
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Courtney was with her parents and siblings and about to board a plane home when officials say Esteban Santiago fatally shot five people one floor below them Friday. Rufus was left behind as the family fled onto the tarmac. Her mother said Courtney has not slept well since.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The airport is returning 25,000 stranded items.