A K-9 search and rescue team based in New York

This is why Eagle Valley Search Dogs is proud to be a member of the New York Federation of Search and Rescue Teams.

Clara Layman

Clara “Dolly” Layman, 73 of Laurens, NY went missing Saturday evening, August 21st.  She suffers from early stages of Alzheimer’s.  Police and Fire personnel from Laurens and nearby Oneonta begin the search by canvasing neighbors. They checked trails and roads and woods right near the home. They called for more support.  They called the New York State Forest Rangers. Mrs. Layman lives in a heavily wooded area. If  someone you love is lost in  any part of New York where the trees outnumber the buildings, get the rangers.  They are the experts.  In 2009 they conducted 144 searches and almost as many rescues.  Surprised?  Most of these stories never make the news.  I don’t know why.

About 10 PM the ranger in charge at the time, Ian Kerr, called Roger Fox,  Federation Chairman.  When the Rangers need manpower, they call us.  Most of the searches I go on are run by rangers.  And in keeping with the tradition of quasi-anonymity, the Federation doesn’t get mentioned in the news much either.

The search area was just outside Oneonta. The closest Federation member teams are us and Amigo. But we are both K-9 only teams and Ranger Kerr  requested ground teams.  The call went out to the next closest teams in the Adirondacks and Hudson river valley.   And people gave up their Sunday plans, got out their rain gear and showed up. About 20 Federation members join 80 or so other local searchers including rangers, state troopers, several local fire departments, and neighbors.  All mobilized in about 10 hours time.  We were all told to report at 7AM Sunday. Many of us got there early.

Here was a search for an older person that was being conducted with the same fervor and intensity you would search for a missing child.  That is saying something.   People are hardwired to respond when a child is in danger. That is why charities so often focus on the plight of children to garner support.  The urge to rescue a child is automatic.  And when there is a child missing rangers have to worry about how to manage volunteers.  The numbers can be overwhelming.  The right response for a missing adult doesn’t come quite as naturally to most of us. It has to be thought about. It has to be trained.  We need to be reminded of the danger.  Clara Layman might have fallen into the pond near her home and drowned.   She could be injured.  Amir and I spent a good part of Sunday searching a couple of neck breaking ravines near her house along with Ranger Joe Bink and a few members of the local community. What if she had stumbled and fell? Clara Layman  is the same age as my mother! I imagined her in the woods–cold, wet, and lost. I imagined myself in the same situation a few years from now.

Sunday ended and Clara Layman was still missing. A second night in the woods, this time a wet one.  Even in August it can be cold at night.  I drove home  worried. It can be difficult to get a good turn out for a weekday search. How many volunteers could afford a day off of work in this economy?

But Monday’s turnout was way better than I expected.  More rangers arrived from other parts of the state. So many State Police were in the woods that somebody remarked it might be a good day to rob a bank. Roger put the call out to the entire Federation.  And they came……from Lima, Brockport, Waterford, Boonville, Gloversville, Piffard, Johnstown, and Fishkill. Fonda, Saugerties, Munford and West Babylon. Palatine Bridge, Middle Grove, Hancock, Brooklyn, Canajoharie…and…New Jersey.

More than 40 federation volunteers from eleven different teams showed up.

The outcome?  Clara Layman, the woman who could be  me a few years from now, or my parent, or yours….was found alive and well around noon today, Monday August 23, 2010.  She was about 1/2 mile from her house in the woods. She was found by a crew of volunteers–ground pounders, not a dog team. The volunteers on the team that found Clara were not from the federation. They were all from local fire departments.  But none of that matters.  We were all there. All of us.

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These are two collages my computer made. I’m not sure every picture is visible as the order is random. Click on each collage to make it bigger. I need to figure out a way to have team members be able to access all of the 51 or so pictures.

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