"Thanx for posting, Passin Me By"... This is an excellent example of the value of the American public/Community in missing/murder person cases, when utilized. The vast majority of the American public are ex-military, public safety; firefighters, law enforcement, civil defense, hunters, fishermen, & other outdoors persons, etc.
In a perfect world, trained/certified SAR 1 & 2 searchers are preferred on a missing person ground or water search. Due to the vast geographical areas involved in many, if not most missing/murdered persons searches, certified/experienced SAR personnel & resource$ are limited..
I would love to see a SAR short course designed specifically for community volunteers in missing/murdered persons cases.. A salute to the volunteer & certified searchers in the Heather Elvis case.
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"With the idea of splitting up, reporting back and to take pictures, not to touch anything, to call 911 or contact someone immediately if we should see something," said Lynette Gutridge, a search volunteer.
And they did.
They found human remains near the railroad track North of Tidewater road.
"It's awe striking, I don't know the words to describe that but it is. It's mixed emotions, It's something you don't expect to find. Once we saw what we saw we backed everybody out of the area, we went back to Tidewater Road and what was found, we called the police, we stayed away from anything that could contaminate a crime scene.
West said he hopes his team's discovery will bring closure to at least one family. And as he searched Tuesday through the woods, he said he won't give up looking for Heather and others who remain missing.
"Most of the people who volunteered to come search and help are all parents and they're concerned for their children and the Elvis' family and the Cross family and the other missing children and adults," said West.
West said one aspect that helped the group on Saturday in finding the human remains is that people in the group were firefighters, had military background, and law enforcement background. He said their knowledge and the organization of the search were key to their discovery.