Libby volunteers help mudslide search

At some point during his exhausting days searching for human remains in the leftovers of the mudslide that devastated Oso, Wash., Terry Crooks would stop, take off his hat and face the area where the latest victim was found. The military would step in, escort the grieving family to the site, conduct a quick service, and move on.

Crooks, a Mountain Unit Leader with David Thompson Search & Rescue, said that was the most emotional part of his three days volunteering as a search and rescue dog handler. Lincoln County Sheriff Roby Bowe and Roy and JoMay Pescador joined Crooks in Washington after Crooks was asked if he could provide assistance. Crooks jumped at the chance to put his black Labrador, Beacon, on the task. The Pescadors brought two of their own certified rescue dogs as well.

“There were 20 dogs from all over the nation,” Crooks said. “The Montana dogs were well-climatized after undergoing avalanche training. It was balmy for them.”

The one-square mile search area is broken into five areas. Libby’s volunteers were primarily assigned to Area 4 — an area of rugged terrain and decimated timber.

“Libby-sized trees were broken like toothpicks,” Crooks said.

Cathy Watson, a public information officer with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), said approximately 900 volunteers have helped the search. Twelve federal organizations and 350 National Guard personnel are aiding the effort. The Snohomish County medical examiner’s office said 35 people are confirmed dead and 11 remain missing.

“We thought if we found 80 percent of the missing we would be doing great,” Jim Ingledue, a member of FEMA’s Incident Support Team said. “There is no separation between FEMA’s search dogs and the volunteer dogs. Our findings are largely from the help of these search dogs.”

Bowe said Libby is fortunate to have a dog handler like Crooks.

“When someone needs help, it’s there,” Bowe said.