Released by: Deputy Shane Zook, Assistance Search and Rescue Coordinator
Release Date January 4, 2022
Location: Near base of Wake Butte
Assisted Subject: 63 year old male – Bend, Or.
On January 3, 2022 at approximately 7:15 pm, 911 Dispatch received a call of an overdue subject, who left his residence southwest of Sunriver. The reporting party told dispatch the subject left, at approximately 1:00 pm to snowshoe in the Forest to the west of his residence.
One Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office Special Services Deputy and 13 Search and Rescue volunteers responded to search of the subject. Two DCSO SAR Volunteers supported mission planning and ten volunteers responded to the area to search for the overdue subject. Searchers used snowmobiles, cross country skis and a tracked ARGO utility vehicle.
SAR Volunteers were able to locate the overdue person’s snow shoe impressions and observed they were heading west. The subject was located by SAR volunteers at 2:18 am near the base of Wake Butte. He was assisted to a location to meet volunteers in the ARGO tracked vehicle for transport out of the forest.
The subject declined medical assistance and was safely transported back to his residence.
The Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office is a full service agency that oversees the adult jail, provides patrol, criminal investigations, civil process and search and rescue operations. Special units include SWAT, Marine Patrol, ATV Patrol, Forest Patrol, along with five K9 teams. Founded in 1916 and today led by your duly elected Sheriff L. Shane Nelson, the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office serves over 200,000 residents in Deschutes County. The agency has 259 authorized and funded personnel, which includes 191 sworn employees who provide services to the 3,055 square miles of Deschutes County.
