Search for missing Chris Palmer hit with worrying new deadline as teams beg for help to find hiker who vanished with dog
EMERGENCY responders have made an urgent plea for help in their search for missing hiker Chris Palmer as a brutal ice storm is set to rain down on crews.
The United Cajun Navy, which is assisting with efforts, said they need a key piece of equipment to fully investigate the beach where the 39-year-old adventurer and his dog Zoey disappeared.
Chris Palmer, 39, and his dog Zoey were declared missing after his abandoned truck was found in the Outer Banks in North CarolinaCredit: National Park Service
The United Cajun Navy is begging for help with their searchCredit: Facebook/United Cajun Navy
Speaking in a Facebook reel, United Cajun Navy Incident Commander Josh Gill said they are intensifying their search of the Outer Banks in North Carolina before Winter Storm Fern blows in.
He said they were “urgently seeking assistance from anyone with access to an airplane, helicopter, or other aircraft to support aerial reconnaissance in the area.”
“Terrain in this region is difficult and aerial eyes would significantly speed up the search,” the nonprofit organization wrote.
Fears for Palmer’s safety grew after his Ford F-250 was found abandoned on a beach in Cape Hatteras – a bend in the Outer Banks with sand dunes, marshes, and forests – on January 12.
On January 16, authorities in Arkansas, where Palmer is from, declared the hiker missing after no one claimed the vehicle.
The National Park Service has now released a new surveillance image from January 9 which shows a white and blue kayak in the back of Palmer’s truck.
They said the kayak was nowhere to be seen when they found the empty vehicle.
Cell phone tower data shows Palmer’s phone pinged near Avon on January 10 and Cape Point on January 11, which are both areas of the Outer Banks.
In a Facebook post, Palmer’s dad Bren said that he hadn’t heard from his son since January 9, when the hiker said in a text that he was heading to Monongahela National Forest in West Virginia.
Palmer vanished in the midst of a road trip through the National Parks in the southeast, which saw him camping in Tennessee and Virginia.
The NPS is urgently asking for information from the public, especially from any boaters who have cruised through the cape around the time Palmer disappearance.
Palmer is described as standing at 5 feet 6 inches with blue eyes and strawberry-blond hair.
The worried dad said that they’re praying for answers and appreciate the support.
In his video, Gill said, “I’ve been speaking to the mother and father, keeping them updated on what’s been going on.
“They wanna know what happened to their son.”
Timeline of Chris Palmer’s disappearance
January 9 – Palmer texts his dad and says he is heading to Monongahela National Forest in West Virginia
January 12 – Palmer’s abandoned Ford F-250 is found at Cape Hatteras in the Outer Banks of North Carolina
January 16 – Palmer is declared missing by authorities in Arkansas, where he is from
January 22 – Officials release new surveillance that shows a kayak used to be in the bed of Palmer’s truck
The NPS said that the kayak seen in the back of Palmer’s truck was missing when the vehicle was found abandonedCredit: National Park Service
