The Search On Blood Mountain
Yesterday I received a call that I was needed to aid in a search for a missing girl in the North Georgia Mountains - specifically Blood Mountain. With the icy and very rugged terrain they were only taking people with SAR training, GEMA Rescue Specialist, or CERT. Since I have two out of three, I got my things together last night, and was on my way well before dawn.
It was a very cold morning. The ground up there was dusted with snow, and the sheer rock faces by the road were cloaked with icicles, some of which were over 10 feet high! It was a awe-inspiring sight as I navigated the hairpin turns over Blood Mountain.
It was amazing how many different agencies were involved in this search. There were law enforcement vehicles from so many different counties, Department Of Natural Resources, GEMA, tons of professional canine search teams, and the State Defense Force. Non-trained individuals were only being used to distribute flyers or keep food and water going to the searchers, so the truly amazing thing was how many professional searchers had responded.
The young lady we were searching for is 24 year old Meredith Emerson. She disappeared New Year's Day while hiking a short trail around Vogel State Park and Blood Mountain with her dog. We were given the basic facts as we split into teams and prepared to go out. We had to wait a long time before getting our assignments, as the case kept changing. Seems as though her dog was found last night, and the man wanted for questioning was also caught last night down around Ashford Dunwoody Road. We also heard that some of her personal effects were found in a dumpster. Finally our team got our assignment, loaded our gear in my Jeep, and set out. We parked at Boggs Creek and were told to search down to Turner's Corner and out to Mt. Pisgah church. We searched along the river, down embankments, under bridges and culverts, and in all the ditches. Our orders were also to search Turner Campsites, which was the easiest part of the search. People who live along the route were very nice. Several cars stopped with us and asked how they could volunteer. We told them that they were just taking professionals at the moment , but to check at Vogel to see if they could be used. Several people right around Turner's Corner asked if we needed anything, and offered to bring food for us. One lady said as soon as she heard about it, she checked under the bridge and along the river bank there at the Corner.
When we arrived back at Vogel we went for chow, which was warm, plentiful, and good! They had fried chicken, baked potatoes, chili, potato soup, cornbread, all kinds of snacks and drinks - you name it! And the volunteers serving in there kept it going. One lady brought a tray of brownies out of the kitchen, fresh from the oven. Another was walking around with a homemade chocolate cake, cutting big slices whether you had already eaten dinner or not! They made an announcement that there was to be a press conference down in front of one of the cabins, but we opted to stay and write up our reports. Not long afterward members of Meredith Emerson's family came into the dining hall in tears. They sat to themselves and everyone gave them space. We found out that the man had formally been charged with kidnapping with intent to cause bodily harm, and was being extradited to Union County immediately. They also announced that they thought it unlikely that she would be found alive. Some of the troops who were down at the press conference said that the news media were awful when that announcement was made. The family had not been forewarned of what was going to be said, so the mom broke down in tears. They said the media swarmed toward them like a bunch of pirhana, and that police and soldiers blocked them from getting to them. That's just wrong. Why on earth did they not tell the family privately that they had reason to believe that she was dead instead of dropping that bomb on them and turning their grief into a media circus?
The word came out that they wanted every available soldier to assist in the search tomorrow, and maybe again Monday. The search area was narrowed to 5 square miles. I declined for tomorrow, but may go back Monday if requested. I signed out and headed home. On the way home I heard on the radio that the "personal effects" they had found in the dumpster included blood soaked clothing, her ID and purse, and a blood stained seat belt, and that the man was vacuuming his van and washing it with bleach when they caught him. His rear seat belt had been cut out. There was also ATM camera footage of him trying to use her credit card.
Please pray for this young lady, for her family and friends, and for all those giving their time to search for her.
It was a very cold morning. The ground up there was dusted with snow, and the sheer rock faces by the road were cloaked with icicles, some of which were over 10 feet high! It was a awe-inspiring sight as I navigated the hairpin turns over Blood Mountain.
It was amazing how many different agencies were involved in this search. There were law enforcement vehicles from so many different counties, Department Of Natural Resources, GEMA, tons of professional canine search teams, and the State Defense Force. Non-trained individuals were only being used to distribute flyers or keep food and water going to the searchers, so the truly amazing thing was how many professional searchers had responded.
The young lady we were searching for is 24 year old Meredith Emerson. She disappeared New Year's Day while hiking a short trail around Vogel State Park and Blood Mountain with her dog. We were given the basic facts as we split into teams and prepared to go out. We had to wait a long time before getting our assignments, as the case kept changing. Seems as though her dog was found last night, and the man wanted for questioning was also caught last night down around Ashford Dunwoody Road. We also heard that some of her personal effects were found in a dumpster. Finally our team got our assignment, loaded our gear in my Jeep, and set out. We parked at Boggs Creek and were told to search down to Turner's Corner and out to Mt. Pisgah church. We searched along the river, down embankments, under bridges and culverts, and in all the ditches. Our orders were also to search Turner Campsites, which was the easiest part of the search. People who live along the route were very nice. Several cars stopped with us and asked how they could volunteer. We told them that they were just taking professionals at the moment , but to check at Vogel to see if they could be used. Several people right around Turner's Corner asked if we needed anything, and offered to bring food for us. One lady said as soon as she heard about it, she checked under the bridge and along the river bank there at the Corner.
When we arrived back at Vogel we went for chow, which was warm, plentiful, and good! They had fried chicken, baked potatoes, chili, potato soup, cornbread, all kinds of snacks and drinks - you name it! And the volunteers serving in there kept it going. One lady brought a tray of brownies out of the kitchen, fresh from the oven. Another was walking around with a homemade chocolate cake, cutting big slices whether you had already eaten dinner or not! They made an announcement that there was to be a press conference down in front of one of the cabins, but we opted to stay and write up our reports. Not long afterward members of Meredith Emerson's family came into the dining hall in tears. They sat to themselves and everyone gave them space. We found out that the man had formally been charged with kidnapping with intent to cause bodily harm, and was being extradited to Union County immediately. They also announced that they thought it unlikely that she would be found alive. Some of the troops who were down at the press conference said that the news media were awful when that announcement was made. The family had not been forewarned of what was going to be said, so the mom broke down in tears. They said the media swarmed toward them like a bunch of pirhana, and that police and soldiers blocked them from getting to them. That's just wrong. Why on earth did they not tell the family privately that they had reason to believe that she was dead instead of dropping that bomb on them and turning their grief into a media circus?
The word came out that they wanted every available soldier to assist in the search tomorrow, and maybe again Monday. The search area was narrowed to 5 square miles. I declined for tomorrow, but may go back Monday if requested. I signed out and headed home. On the way home I heard on the radio that the "personal effects" they had found in the dumpster included blood soaked clothing, her ID and purse, and a blood stained seat belt, and that the man was vacuuming his van and washing it with bleach when they caught him. His rear seat belt had been cut out. There was also ATM camera footage of him trying to use her credit card.
Please pray for this young lady, for her family and friends, and for all those giving their time to search for her.
posted by Jennifer at 11:43 PM
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