K9 Locates Missing Maine Man in 20 Minutes before Heavy Rain

The Maine Warden Service rescued an 85-year-old man from Parkman after he went missing in the woods Monday.

Missing Man Last Seen in the Morning

Gene Wilbur was reported missing around 6:40 pm. Mark Latti, Communications Director, Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife said Wilbur has dementia.

Family Called 911

Wilbur was last seen on Monday morning at 8:30 am when a family member visited him at his residence on Route 150 in Parkman. Wilbur was missing when the same person came for a visit later in the day. After a search, 911 was called.

“Fading Daylight and a Forecast of Heavy Rain”

A K9 team and wardens arrived on the scene. Latti said, “due to the fading daylight and a forecast of heavy rain, 8 game wardens were dispatched to the scene” including a pilot, K9 Storm, certified K9 searchers with the Maine Search and Rescue Dogs and a deputy with the Piscataquis Sheriff's Office.

K9 Locates Missing Man in 20 Minutes

The search started around Wilbur’s residence and into a wooded area across the road. Game Warden Chad Robertson deployed K9 Storm on a trail leading to a bog. Latti said, “K9 Storm was able to locate Wilbur over a quarter of a mile from the residence in the woods along the edge of the bog.”

“Unable to Stand”

Wilbur’s feet and legs were wet from the bog and he was found on the ground and unable to stand. He was dehydrated and hypothermic. Wardens assisted him to an overgrown woods road where a Warden Service Patrol Truck took him to an ambulance.

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Taken to the Hospital

Wilbur was transported to Northern Light Hospital in Dover Foxcroft. He was treated and released, said Latti.