 |
| Austin Bohanan found. |
Park Rangers received some initial details as reported to them from Bohanan about his 11-day experience. He told Rangers that after becoming separated from his stepfather on Friday afternoon in the Shop Creek area, he climbed to the top of the ridge to try to make a cell phone call to his mother for help. After a few failed attempts, he attempted to follow a creek out of the woods. He believes that he followed Tabcat and Panther Creeks, both upstream and downstream, for days within the 6,700-acre search area as he tried to make his way back towards Highway 129. He was challenged by dense vegetation in the drainages and blowdowns.
“From day one, we treated the search for Austin as an emergency and appreciate the resources from across the region that came to our aid to help us actively and aggressively search through extremely tough terrain,” said Park Chief Ranger Steve Kloster. “We faced multiple challenges, including a moving target in dense conditions, but our search teams never gave up hope.”
Over 100 searchers from multiple agencies aggressively searched for Bohanan using ground crews, air operations, canine units, and boat operators. The teams navigated extremely steep slopes and drainages in the search area. At one point, Bohanan heard a search helicopter and tried to climb to a high point where he could be seen. While Bohanan appears to have remained within the search area, he was constantly moving and left little sign behind in the dense foliage.
More details regarding the total search efforts will be provided as the information is compiled.
 |
| Old Park map shows Tabcat Creek near the bottom of the map and Panther Creek going through the top right. Austin Bohanan said he thought he was following these creeks back and forth while trying to find Highway 129 during his 11 days lost in the Smokies. |
No comments :
Post a Comment