By RACHEL JACKSON
Special to The News Leader
MILLERSBURG -- The Carroll County Amateur Radio Club's Search and Rescue, based in Malvern, joined the search Saturday, March 29, for a 47-year-old Dalton man.
The body of Craig Uhl was recovered Saturday from a Hardy Township creek. Uhl was last seen early March 23 at a friend's home on Township Road 305, where he had gone for a semi-regular unofficial reunion, said Holmes County Sheriff Timothy W. Zimmerly.
Uhl's body was found Saturday in a creek that flows through a heavily wooded area about a mile west of Township Road 305, according to a news release from the Sheriff's Office.
Members of Uhl's family had organized a search Saturday, complete with canine and equine search teams, to comb the area where Uhl was last seen. Among those searching were eight members of Carroll County Amateur Radio Club's Search and Rescue group, which included Boy Scouts.
Two members of the search party found Uhl's body and called the Sheriff's Office by cell phone, according to the news release. The discovery was reported at 12:46 p.m.
According to Gary Lewis, secretary of the radio club, the members followed a fan-like search pattern and found Uhl in less than two hours.
Chief Deputy Nathan Fritz, of the Sheriff's Office, said the search team did a "commendable job" of setting a boundary around the scene to protect any evidence.
"They stayed back 100-150 yards at least. The first officer on scene (said) they pretty much sealed off the area. That certainly makes our job easier," Fritz said.
Lewis commended the efforts of the Boy Scouts, who maintained the perimeter.
While Lewis is proud of the accomplishments of the search and rescue members, he was saddened Uhl was found too late.
Retrieval of the body was hampered by the rugged terrain in which Uhl was found, according to the release.
Previous searches had focused on areas within walking distance of the Township Road 305 house. Uhl had difficulty walking great distances because of health issues, according to family.
"He wasn't likely to be able to negotiate any kind of steep terrain. We tried to concentrate on areas he could (walk)," Fritz said.
Saturday, family, friends and volunteers from a several-county area met to continue the search efforts.
Ron Cassady of Central Ohio K9 Search and Rescue and Recovery volunteered his two German shepherds for the search efforts.
Other search teams already had searched the area around the home and outbuildings, as well as the road about a mile north and south of the house, so his goal Saturday was to focus on the hill and pond to the west of the road, Cassady said prior to the search.
Brittany Uhl, Craig Uhl's daughter, expressed gratitude for the many offers of support.
The Daily Record reporter Rachel Jackson can be reached at 330-287-1632 or rjackson@the-daily-record. com. The Daily Record is a Dix Communications newspaper, a sister newspaper to The News Leader. Kimberly Lewis, editor of The News Leader, contributed to the article.