The Cook County Sheriff's Office utilized an aerial drone to successfully locate a missing and endangered man in the Deer Park West Forest Preserve in Palatine. Sheriff Thomas J. Dart announced the operation's success.
The search began on Monday night when the Sheriff's Police K9 Unit and the Aerial Support Response Team (ASRT) were called to Camp Alphonse in response to a request from Cook County Forest Preserve Police. The missing individual, a 63-year-old man with diabetes and early onset dementia, was reported missing earlier that afternoon. He was known for frequently walking in the forest preserve near his home.
Efforts by K9 units and ASRT officers to find him continued from approximately 10 p.m. until 1:30 a.m., but they did not locate him during that time. The search resumed at around 8 a.m. today, with ASRT returning to the area. An ASRT officer launched a drone shortly before 1 p.m., focusing on an area north of Arbor Lane and Dundee Road, where he spotted the man on the drone camera display lying hidden by tall grass off a pathway.
The officer communicated the man's location via radio, maintaining the drone's position above him to guide Palatine Police, Cook County Forest Preserve Police, and paramedics who were searching other areas of the preserve.
The man was found conscious and able to converse with first responders before being transported to a local hospital for treatment.
Since its formation in 2021, ASRT has participated in numerous aerial and marine searches for missing persons, provided reconnaissance and tactical support for hostage or barricade situations, and assisted in tracking suspects fleeing police after violent crimes.