The search continues for a Fairbanks man missing northeast of the city. Gerald DeBerry was last seen Monday riding a 4 wheeler in the Frozen Foot Creek area, near mile 70 of the Steese highway. DeBerry was a volunteer member of a search team looking for a Utah woman who was found safe Monday morning. Alaska State Trooper spokeswoman Megan Peters says the 53 year old DeBerry has good knowledge of the area, but reports from fellow searchers who talked to him on the trail indicate possible trouble.
Peters says one of the fellow searchers gave DeBerry a jacket to wear over his sweatshirt, but that he does not have gear or provisions to be out for an extended period. She did not know if he has any communications equipment. She says the search for DeBerry has been extensive, employing ground crews, search dogs, state, military and civilian aircraft, but that they’ve scaled back to aerial efforts on Thursday.
Peters says they’re hoping to find some sign of DeBerry to narrow the search area and focus a ground crew on.
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Dan Bross is a reporter at KUAC in Fairbanks.