(Lander, WY) – The Fremont County Sheriff’s Office and the Fremont County Search and Rescue Teams have been engaged in a massive search effort since Thursday, September 29, 2022, to find 73-year-old Chuck Kaiser from Michigan.
On the afternoon of September 29 at around 1:30 pm, the Fremont County Emergency Dispatch Center received a 911 call from a man reporting that he became separated from his hiking partner in the area of Blue Ridge, just off the Loop Road.
Search and Rescue teams and Sheriff Deputies responded to the area and began a search for the man using a bloodhound tracking dog and several ground search teams. As severe weather moved through the area, air assets were not able to fly. Searchers remained in the area until around 4 am on the morning of September 30. Two hours later, a full-scale search operation resumed.
As soon as weather permitted, a helicopter from Sublette County’s Tip Top Search and Rescue team was deployed to the area. The search has been ongoing daily ever since, including today, October 10. However, it will likely be suspended at the end of today if he is not located.
Throughout the search, Lander Search and Rescue and the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office have received assistance from Dubois Search and Rescue, Riverton Search and Rescue, Tip Top Search and Rescue, The Wyoming Catholic College, Central Wyoming College, Tri State Search Dogs, Rocky Mountain Search Dogs, The Wyoming Game and Fish, the U.S. Forest Service and other volunteers.
The Fremont County Sheriff’s Office would like to extend a special thank you to local businesses that have supported the search effort, Mr. D’s for supplying food and drinks for the searchers, The Inn at Lander, and the Pronghorn Inn for supplying housing for the search dog teams who traveled from Utah, Colorado, Montana, and far reaches of Wyoming.
The Fremont County Sheriff’s Office staff and all involved in the search effort are disappointed that we have not yet been able to bring closure for the family and friends of Chuck Kaiser as they endure a very difficult time, and offer our most sincere condolences.