WASHINGTON, Mo. — Search efforts continued Thursday after a person went lacking whereas floating on chunks of ice within the Missouri River east of Washington, Mo.
Aaron Duenke, 34, was final heard from at about 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, his brother Curtis Duenke advised the Submit-Dispatch.
A submit about Duenke’s disappearance has been shared over 1,700 occasions on Fb, and an “Aaron Duenke Search Efforts” web page was finally established to coordinate search efforts.
On Thursday, individuals deliberate to satisfy up at Paddle Cease Brewery in New Haven to coordinate search efforts. A submit mentioned they deliberate to go looking 5 miles up and 5 miles down the Missouri River from the Klondike Park Boat Ramp, about 30 miles east of the brewery.
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“Any assist could be nice,” Curtis Duenke mentioned. “Any assist I can get — simply time and drones and ft on the bottom.”
Washington police Lt. Steve Sitzes mentioned his division obtained a name Tuesday that Duenke was paddling down the river on a piece of ice. Officers spoke with him and Duenke advised police he was wonderful and that he had completed this earlier than.
Sitzes mentioned floating on ice within the river isn’t unlawful, so police didn’t cease him.
“I’ve been right here 30 years and haven’t seen this exercise,” Sitzes mentioned. “Now I did some Googling and I did discover some teams on the market that do one of these factor, however it’s not well-known and it is extraordinarily harmful — these icebergs can break aside once they hit each other or a wing dam.”
Duenke’s pal mentioned they suppose he began his journey in Dundee, a couple of miles northeast of Washington and deliberate to cease at Hinckley Bend, in St. Johns Township between Washington and Labadie.
“Later that night is when individuals mentioned he did not arrive at his vacation spot,” Sitzes mentioned, noting the person’s final identified location based mostly on cellular phone information was “nicely exterior” the division’s jurisdiction.
Paddle Cease Brewery in New Haven posted to its Fb web page about Duenke, saying he had labored for the corporate in varied capacities, “from flipping burgers to constructing boats,” for a number of years.
The submit mentioned he was a carpenter and “fell in love with huge river paddle boarding, and the tradition behind huge river recreation” and had paddled hundreds of miles.
Duenke is the second individual to go lacking in that space of the Missouri River in latest months.
Kenny Loudermilk, 35, went lacking Oct. 26 when he was paragliding and landed within the Missouri River, Sitzes mentioned.
Somebody noticed him land within the river with all of his tools, the lieutenant mentioned, which weighed roughly 80 kilos.
Washington police took the preliminary report on Loudermilk’s disappearance, however Sitzes mentioned the Missouri State Freeway Patrol Water Patrol Division is accountable for periodic search efforts for the person’s physique.
Loudermilk was from O’Fallon, Missouri.