Deceased/Not Found WA - Sam Dubal, 34, UW professor, Mother Mountain Loop, Mowich Lake TH, Mount Rainier, 9 Oct 2020

[rainynights]

The National Park Service (NPS) said Friday that with the arrival of winter weather and following "exhaustive" search efforts with no results, it is suspending ground searches for Dubal.

“Searchers have spent long hours scouring the area and not locating Dr. Dubal is heavy on our hearts,” said Chip Jenkins, superintendent at Mount Rainer National Park, in a statement Friday. “We continue to be in close contact with Dr. Dubal’s family and will keep them updated as new information becomes available.”

On Thursday, Dubal's family told KING 5 they remain hopeful he is still found alive somewhere on the mountain.

Search suspended for UW professor missing at Mount Rainier National Park | king5.com

Mount Rainier National Park

 

[PommyMommy]

OCT 23, 2020
Family of hiker missing for 2 weeks in Mount Rainier park pushes for search to continue
[...]

Dubal's sister, Dena, said Friday that the family is grateful for the efforts and expertise of the park service but is pleading for crews to actively search for the educator for at least 72 more hours.

"We're in a survivable period with a really survivable guy that is young, fit and has gear on him," Dena said in a phone interview.

Dubal was last known to be hiking the Mother Mountain Loop out of the Mowich Lake Trailhead, park officials said.

... He had recently completed another, more difficult hike in the area, she said.

[...]

The family does not expect an active search to last forever, and they want additional aggressive searches to be performed only if it is safe for personnel. But they believe challenging weather may have meant that some areas were overlooked. His family also believes that a water bottle that park officials said was found along the trail last week may be a signal that he is lost off-trail.

Dena Dubal said that weather could clear over the weekend which could give searchers another good chance. "We cannot know for sure, but there is a chance," she said.

[...]

 

[steff13]

He has a very kind face. I hope his sister is right and he has the skills to survive.

 

[watcher9]

There's a lot of beautiful scenery to explore just off the trail a little, and backpacking sites to try and choose, if the day closed out on him before getting to his chosen camp.

Do we know if he made it to the Carbon River Camp?

I was wondering the same thing about the camp. That may help nail down where he could be? How close is the camp to the loop or is it on the loop? The bridge that washed out according to previous post - would that be before or after the camp location?

 

[dotr]

Oct 24 2020
Family of missing Seattle hiker urges authorities, Trump to continue search
''After a nine-day search in difficult conditions, the effort has been suspended, but Dubal’s family believes it's too soon to stop, especially with the weather improving over the next few days.They started a petition on Thursday asking that rescue teams continue searching.''

Dr. Sam Dubal and family, provided by his sister

“We are so grateful to the brave searchers and the expertise of the NPS – they are who you want to search for you – but to stop at Day Nine is too early,” Dena Dubal, Sam’s sister, told Fox News. “Sam is fit, he has all the gear on him for rain and snow. He has a tent on him. He has camped in the Himalayas, so this is too early.”

“We implore the Mount Rainier National Park Service, [NPS Acting Director] Margaret Everson and President Donald Trump, to please reactivate the search for Sam.”

“He is clever, he is beloved by so many, he is a lover of nature, and he is in wonder and awe of where he is right now. He is struggling and he needs our help.”

 

[scdiv]

https://nypost.com/2020/10/24/man-missing-for-2-weeks-after-mount-rainier-national-park-hike/

 

[MoeInVA]

I was wondering the same thing about the camp. That may help nail down where he could be? How close is the camp to the loop or is it on the loop? The bridge that washed out according to previous post - would that be before or after the camp location?

I do not know if they confirmed that he made it to the camp, but the location of the unique water bottle indicated he had gotten past the camp and past the river crossings. 3/4 of the way back to the trail head where he started.

 

[Rosegold68]

why would he drop his water bottle?

you don't generally lose them or willingly let them go

 

[MoeInVA]

I don’t know. FWIW- His sister said she thought he left it as a clue for himself or others in case he got lost. Maybe to mark his spot if he was going off trail.
Personally I would think you’d drop something less vital or Mark a tree or something but who knows.
Maybe he dropped it accidentally and didn’t notice. That’s usually something you’d notice but maybe not in the weather conditions he was facing???

 

[K9Enzo]

It’s possible he tied his water bottle onto his pack or thought it was secure and it dropped and he didn’t realize. I don’t think someone would intentionally leave a water bottle behind. IMO

 

[K9Enzo]

IMO This poor family is desperate with the search being suspended.

A warning to heed..... I’ve heard them called ambulance chasers & they are a disgrace.

Tacoma Mountain Rescue Unit

(Snippet)

In the last few years we've sadly seen the rise of the "Private Search" scam. These are the crooks who prey on the grief of those who have loved ones lost in the Washington wilderness.

They encourage heartbroken families & friends to run Facebook, & JustGiving campaigns then take thousands - often tens of thousands - of dollars to pay themselves to wander about the woods for just as long as they can ride that gravy train.

They use plenty of jargon, spend plenty of time updating blogs, vlogs, tweets and stoking social media. They boast of search skills and outdoor abilities - but they never apply, test or volunteer to join professional SAR. They just claim that they need more and more money. Strange how quickly it always runs out.

Please, share with your friends, that Washington is home to the Founder members of the national Mountain Rescue Association. These teams are volunteer run charities, made up of hundreds of some of the best mountaineers, rescue riggers and wilderness searchers in the US. Members are tested, trained, accredited SAR professionals who volunteer & ask for no pay or reward except for finding the lost and protecting the outdoor community. All donations just go toward much needed gear, gas and more training.

 

[dotr]

It’s possible he tied his water bottle onto his pack or thought it was secure and it dropped and he didn’t realize. I don’t think someone would intentionally leave a water bottle behind. IMO

Reminded of this other experienced Canadian hiker who went missing and is still missing, and whose water bottle also was located by searchers.. fwiw.
rbbm.
Ws thread..
Australia - Australia - Prabhdeep Srawn, 25, Canadian, Snowy Mtns, NSW, 13 May 2013

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/hami...nding-signs-of-missing-hamilton-man-1.1324261
''A Hamilton man who is lost in a mountainous region of Australia may be leaving behind clues for search crews to find, his family says.

Australian officials are still searching for Prabhdeep Srawn, 25, who went missing in Australia's Snowy Mountains eleven days ago. According to his cousin Ruby Singh-Sahota, crews have found a water bottle that might be his.

The bottle was found half full in the middle of a trail. It bears the logo of a scuba diving location where he went diving last December, she says.


"We're very hopeful he's leaving signs behind for them to track down," Singh-Sahota said.''

 

[K9Enzo]

Reminded of this other experienced Canadian hiker who went missing and is still missing, and whose water bottle also was located by searchers.. fwiw.
rbbm.
Ws thread..
Australia - Australia - Prabhdeep Srawn, 25, Canadian, Snowy Mtns, NSW, 13 May 2013

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/hami...nding-signs-of-missing-hamilton-man-1.1324261
''A Hamilton man who is lost in a mountainous region of Australia may be leaving behind clues for search crews to find, his family says.

Australian officials are still searching for Prabhdeep Srawn, 25, who went missing in Australia's Snowy Mountains eleven days ago. According to his cousin Ruby Singh-Sahota, crews have found a water bottle that might be his.

The bottle was found half full in the middle of a trail. It bears the logo of a scuba diving location where he went diving last December, she says.


"We're very hopeful he's leaving signs behind for them to track down," Singh-Sahota said.''

Thanks for posting this info. Perhaps he did. Someone mentioned upthread that it was a unique water bottle. IMO

 

[GraceG]

This is heartbreaking. I grew up in SW WA State and hiked Rainier a lot but never after October, even with gear.

 

[MoeInVA]

Dr. Dubal’s sister tweeted they are Re-starting the search today.

Pulling for him, but really worried he became confused and succumbed to hypothermia that Saturday or Sunday before anyone knew he was missing.

 

[PommyMommy]

Article updated OCT 23, 2020
A university professor has been missing for nearly two weeks after hiking in Mount Rainier National Park - CNN

[...]

For the first nine days, a group including park rangers, volunteer hikers and helicopter crews from the National Park Service and US Air Force searched for Dubal on the ground and by air. But poor weather on Wednesday and Thursday limited the abilities of rescuers to continue searching on the ground.

[...]

Dubal's family started a petition on Thursday asking that rescue teams continue searching for him aggressively for at least 72 more hours.

"We cannot bear the thought of an abandoned Sam during a survivable period along with improving weather and with the very best of search teams in charge," his sister Dena Dubal told CNN in an email.

[...]

CNN has made multiple attempts to reach the National Parks Service for comment but has not yet heard back.

[...]

Wandering off trail is the most common reason that hikers get lost, according to a study by SmokyMountains.com. Whether or not a person survives depends largely on their ability to find food, shelter, water and warmth, though extreme conditions in the wilderness can make that challenging.

When embarking on a trip in the wild, experts recommend packing essential equipment, including maps, fire starters and extra layers of clothing. If venturing off route, hikers should identify a "bailout direction," such as a creek or road and leave a trail as they go.

 

[MoeInVA]

The National Park Service put out a press release confirming they resumed the search and provided some further details about when the bridge washed out, search strategies to date, snowy cold conditions and the risk assessments of searching. Search resumed for missing hiker in Mount Rainier National Park - Mount Rainier National Park (U.S. National Park Service)

 

[RickshawFan]

why would he drop his water bottle?

you don't generally lose them or willingly let them go

He might have dropped the water bottle on the trail to mark the location where he went off it, e.g. for a pit stop. I usually dump something when I step away from the trail. Just in case I go missing.
If he's experienced, he'll have more than one water bottle, so I would 't worry too much about him having one less.

 

[RickshawFan]

Almost exactly a year ago, a hiker went missing in the North Cascades.
https://nypost.com/2019/10/23/missing-washington-hiker-vanished-on-expedition-to-lookout-cabin/
WA - WA - Rachel Lakoduk, 28, hiker, Marblemount, North Cascades, 17 Oct 2019
This time of year, "weather" comes in (marking the change of seasons). At elevations as low as 3000', that can mean snow.
For the North Cascades last year and Rainier this year, snow is indeed the issue. Even with a little snow underfoot you can get disoriented, lose the trail, miss footing, not see contours....
You'd want to quick look for a tree or something to keep weather/wind off you and just pitch your tent in that situation and wait for help. It seems like SD had the right equipment—and it's almost certain that he was a resourceful guy—but a one-off accident might well be the cause here. Another detail, though: he had only just started at UW in June. That means he might be unfamiliar with the NW and how weather works and how quickly it can descend. It can take you by surprise if you're not familiar. And when the fall weather pattern sets in... that's something you may not be used to at all.

 

[RickshawFan]

Wow, I just looked at photos of the Mowich Lake Trail posted upthread, and that trail is so exposed. In "weather" that would presumably mean one snowfield after another. Do we know what direction he was hiking in? Clockwise or anti-clockwise?