The children, between 13 and 18 years old, were mostly recovered from high-risk situations, and at least one child was found as far away as Florida.

“These are kids that have been abused, neglected. Some involved in human trafficking,” U.S. Marshal Pete Elliott told local Cleveland station WOIO. “Some we found in Miami, Fla. We have Bedford, Bedford Heights, West Side, East Side, Akron, Mansfield and so on…We’re trying to do our part. A number of these children have gone to the hospital after we’ve recovered them to get checked out, so again this is something we take very seriously.”

Just a few days before Ohio announced the success of their operation, 39 missing children, including some alleged sex-trafficking victims, were recovered following a two-week operation in Georgia.

“Operation Not Forgotten” in metro Atlanta and Macon resulted in the rescue of 25 children, the safe location of 13 others and the arrests of nine people for alleged crimes related to sex trafficking, parental kidnapping, registered sex-offender violations, drugs and weapons possession, and custodial interference. The initiative involved the U.S. Marshals Service, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, and Georgia state and local agencies.

The missing children were considered to be some of the most at-risk and challenging recovery cases in the area, based on indications of sex trafficking, exploitation, sexual abuse, physical abuse and medical or mental health conditions, the U.S. Marshals Service said in a press release.

Fifteen of the children had allegedly been trafficked for sex, authorities said, according to the Atlanta Journal Constitution.

“Sex trafficking can be, in many ways, a hidden crime — one that lives in the shadows,” Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr said at a news conference Thursday. “If we can save one child from a life of abuse or sex trafficking, we’ve done our job. And this operation did that for many, many children.”

In other cases, children were located at the request of law enforcement to ensure their well-being. Investigators were able to confirm each child’s location in person and assure their safety and welfare.

The children ranged in ages from 3 to 17 and had been missing anywhere from two weeks to two years. Some of them were reluctant to leave the homes where they were found, which officials said often happens with children or teens who are repeatedly subjected to sexual abuse.

Donald Washington, director of the U.S. Marshals Service, said that of the more than 421,000 children missing in the country, 91% are considered endangered runaways and about one-sixth are likely to become sex-trafficking victims.