PORT TOWNSEND — Police found a missing man within hours of beginning a search for him, thanks to a huge network of city and county searchers, and volunteers.
Ralph Theodore Schuder, 77, of Port Townsend, was found safe and uninjured Monday morning when a city employee spotted him and called police.
“He’s absolutely great,” said Port Townsend Police Sgt. Garin Williams, incident commander during the search for Schuder.
Police said Schuder was back with his family before 10:45 a.m. Monday.
Schuder was reported missing early Monday morning from his home in the 700 block of T Street.
He was last seen around noon Saturday when his daughter spoke to him via phone.
The police department, with the help of the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office and city employees, “printed hundreds of fliers and flooded the streets with them,” early Monday morning, Williams said.
Spotted quickly
It was a public works employee who spotted Schuder and called police, he said.
Police had earlier responded to Schuder’s residence and found it unoccupied. His only vehicle was parked there and the home was locked.
Schuder was known to suffer from dementia, has a heart condition and might be depressed, his family told police.
“To get Mr. Schuder found that quickly was a great feeling,” Williams said.
Williams said that, in addition to being happy to be able to bring Schuder safely back to his family, he was impressed with the teamwork he saw between the two law enforcement agencies and the city employees.
“It was magnificent,” he said.
However, he added that there is a better way for families to protect their loved ones.
Project Lifesaver, which provides a tracking bracelet for adults with dementia, autism or other disorders, can help locate a person who tends to wander and get lost, he said.
More information about Project Lifesaver is available at www.projectlifesaver.org.
________
Reporter Arwyn Rice can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 56250, or at arice@peninsuladailynews.com.
