Hart County, Ga., Sep. 18, 2017 – “Today, the Chamblee Police Department along with its local/state law enforcement and non-law enforcement partners con-ducted a search of approximately 218 acres of hunting property located in Hart County, Georgia” read the press release from the Chamblee Police Department issued on September 18, 2017.

Members of the GSDF review maps and establish search parameters before embarking on a daylong, multi-agency search and rescue mission in east Georgia, September 18, 2017.

 

The search was related to an ongoing investigation of a missing person.  When the person in question disappeared under suspicious circumstances in October 2016, she left her workplace in a hurry. She vanished without any means of identification or money and, most importantly, she left behind her seven-year-old son. 

A person outside the family reported her missing in December 2016.  With the purpose of uncovering any evidence to locate the missing person or to reveal what might have happened to her, a search was conducted in Hart County with the assistance of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, Georgia State Patrol, Georgia State Defense Force, Hart County Sheriff’s Office, local metro Atlanta law enforcement agencies, and other non-law enforcement volunteers. 

The extensive search of the hunting property in east Georgia was a crucial part of the ongoing investigation. “Chamblee Police Department was relying heavily on the Georgia State Defense Force (GSDF) for their experience in Grid Searching Missions”, said Lieutenant Jason D. Waasdorp of the Chamblee Po-lice Department in a statement. Waasdorp also said, “We would like to extend our gratitude and deepest respect for the Soldiers of the Georgia State Defense Force.” “Being able to contribute the Search and Rescue expertise our Soldiers have gained was a privilege,” said equally impressed Georgia State Defense Force Captain James R. LeMay. “We were able to use our skills in a very effective way. We felt the teams we worked with were amongst the best Law Enforcements Agencies in the State and we are looking forward to working with partners like this in the future,” Capt. LeMay said.

 

A massive effort to help answer the questions that surround the disappearance of the woman in question was made. The Chamblee Police Department, multiple agencies, and many external volunteers demonstrated their capabilities and it is hoped that some of those questions can be answered soon.

 

 

By Pfc. Andreas Alsdorf, andreas.alsdorf@gasdf.us

South Carolina State Guard’s commander, MG(SC) Thomas S. Mullikin, actively participated with the National Guard contingent in the planning and execution of disaster relief operations during the recent Hurricane Joaquin event.

In this statewide emergency the volunteer professionals of the South Carolina State Guard served across the state. There were more than 100 State Guard members, from all three brigades and the headquarters detachment, providing engineering assessments in Newberry, manning the state Emergency Operations Center in Columbia, and filling sandbags in the Low Country. They provided strategic planning, augmented law enforcement, and provided engineering assistance – all at no cost to the state of SC.