THOMPSON TOWNSHIP, Ohio — A body was found in the search area for a missing 76-year-old Geauga County woman Wednesday morning by an AirTracker 5 crew flying overhead as volunteers searched from the ground.
Authorities said that while the body has not been positively identified, it looks "very much like" that of Susan Taylor, who has been missing from Thompson Township since March 17.
The body was found roughly 1,600 feet from Taylor's home.
A cause of death has not been confirmed at this time, Sheriff Scott Hildenbrand said. The coroner's office has been notified.
"Now we have some closure for the family, at least on this chapter," Hildenbrand said.
The News 5 journalist who spotted the body immediately relayed that information to law enforcement authorities. News 5 did not identify the woman, initially reporting only that a body had been spotted in the search area while deferring to authorities regarding identification.
The citizen-aided effort to find a Taylor began at about 9:30 a.m. Police took the unconventional step of asking the public for help. The public responded with hundreds of volunteers filling the parking lot of St. Patrick's, the staging ground for search efforts. The road leading to the church before the search was bumper-to-bumper.
"We had more than 400 people out here to help look for her. It's unfortunate the outcome, but at least the family has closure," the sheriff said.
By 8:30 a.m., 430 volunteers had signed up to search, beginning at St. Patrick's, which is about a mile-and-a-half away from Susan Taylor's home. The nearby terrain is rough to traverse, and some showers were expected. Volunteers showed up in hunting gear and other outdoor clothing. K-9s went out in the first wave.
Volunteers began boarding buses to head out on the search around 9:20 a.m.
One volunteer told News 5's Mike Holden on Wednesday morning that it was a "no-brainer" to show up and help with the search. Another said, "I know if it was my family or a close loved one, that I would want the same from other people — to show up."
“We want to do a large area search and we’re asking for volunteers to help us out with that,” said Geauga County Sheriff Scott Hildenbrand. “This community has always been very supportive and helpful. And the more people we have, the quicker we can cover that area.”
The Sheriff's Office asked for individuals 18 years or older to help search a large wilderness area for the woman.
Volunteers were asked to meet at St. Patrick's Catholic Church, 16550 Rock Creek Road, Thompson Township, between 7:30 and 8 a.m. to check in. Volunteers were told to bring a valid photo ID. Boots were recommended to search thick marshes and wetlands.
The Sheriff's Office requests routed RSVPs through this Facebook event.
"Participants need to bring appropriate clothing and gear to remain self-sufficient in this terrain for four hours. This search must be conducted on foot. DO NOT bring any ATV-type vehicles, horses, or animals of any kind. Police K-9s and preauthorized specialty K-9 units will be in use, therefore no other animals can be present on the search grounds," the Sheriff's Office said.
Investigators first responded to the Sidley Road property Friday evening. Taylor's son reported finding no sign of his mother when he arrived there for the weekend, despite finding her car, purse and cell phone there.
“It was really a shock and it was hard to fathom it happening in Thompson,” John Heston told News 5 of his neighbor's disappearance.
He said Taylor had purchased the property across from him several years ago and was fixing it up.
“She had everything going for her. She was really looking forward to living there. And that was the impression she gave me,” Heston said. “She seemed like a very nice woman, very coherent, no illnesses I could see, like dementia or Alzheimer’s or something like that would make you think of something like this happening.”
Sheriff Hildenbrand agreed the disappearance was puzzling.
“Everyone we talked to said she was very sharp. She was a nurse, very mobile, she had no problem walking around,” he explained.
The Sheriff's Office, along with emergency crews and law enforcement from around the region, extensively searched the area with K9 units, drones, aircraft and investigators until 4 a.m. Saturday. They returned during daylight hours with a dive team and searched again until a snowstorm halted their efforts.
“With the cold nights we’ve had out here, low 20s, I’m concerned for her. [It] makes you wonder what happened to her,” Heston said. “You just hope for the best and pray for her. That’s all I can say, that I hope she’s ok.”
The Sheriff said investigators don't often make public requests for search volunteers, but hoped it would be tool that yields answers.
“We are not discounting anything," he said. "We don’t know what happened, so we are going to do our best to figure that out.”
The Geauga County Detective Bureau had requested that residents who may have retained video showing the roadway from March 17 or before from the locations below provide that video to them by calling 440-286-1234.
- Sidley Road between Burrows Road and Stocking Road
- Rock Creek Road between Rt 528 and Rt 534
- Thompson Road between Rt 528 and Rt 534
- All of Stocking Road
- All of Mosely Road
- Phillips Road west of Rt 534
- Burrows Road between Plank Road and Callahan Road
- Callahan Road west of Rt 534
The Geauga County Sheriff's Office released a statement onFacebook thanking everyone who was part of the search for Taylor.
Sheriff Hildenbrand would like to thank all of the citizens that volunteered their time today to help search for Susan Taylor. The volunteers searched through thick wooded areas that were extremely wet with rugged terrain. It also exposed the best and most supportive aspects of our community. It was incredible to see the outpouring support. We would also like to express our appreciation to the American Red Cross, Berkshire Schools, Region 2 USAR, Ohio Branch K9, King’s Towing, Ohio Special Response Team, Summit Search and Rescue, Windsor Fire Department , Munson Fire Department, Hambden Fire Department, Montville Fire Department, Thompson Police Department, Thompson Fire Department, Bainbridge Fire Department, Middlefield Fire Department, Chardon Fire Department, Auburn Fire Department, Troy Fire Department, Hartsgrove Fire Department, Geauga County Auditor’s Office, Andover Police Department, Geauga County Prosecutors Office, St. Patrick’s Catholic Church, First Energy, Sirna’s Pizza and countless other agencies. Our sincere condolences go out to Susan Taylor’s family. We ask that you give them privacy during this difficult time.
RELATED: Geauga County Sheriff's Office searching for missing 76-year-old woman
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