Helicopter, Ground Crews Locate Missing Hiker

UPDATE |  MAY 17, 2016, 5:55PM

At 5:30PM, the King County Sheriff’s Office stated via twitter that that the missing man had been located, was safe and would be examined by aid crews.

If you hear helicopters in the area, Tuesday, May 17, 2016, King County Search and Rescue crews are currently looking for a missing climber and have called in  helicopters to help cover more area.

According to KCSAR Volunteer Public Information Officer Alan LaBissoniere, the technical climber was reported missing Monday afternoon, May 16th, after failing to meet a planned return time of approximately 2PM.

KOMO News reported the missing man’s vehicle was located at the Denny Creek trailhead.

Crews are searching a large area, described by LaBissoniere as between “the end of Middle Fork Road and Snoqualmie Pass.” The area also has bad cell service, which adds difficulty to the search efforts.

As ground crews started a second search shift Tuesday morning, King County Sheriff’s Office Guardian 1 helicopter was called in to assist in searching the miles of terrain.

Due to the large search area and spotty to no cell service, LaBissoniere said the search could last for hours. He added that residents should expect to hear helicopter traffic over the Snoqualmie Valley on Tuesday as they continue searching.

More information will be added as it becomes available.