FRESNO, Calif. — The search continues for 65-year-old Ron Dailey of Selma, who has now been missing for four days after heading out alone on a hunting trip in the Shaver Lake and Courtright Reservoir area.
Dailey told his family where he’d be before leaving, but he never returned home on Monday.
“He’s an experienced hunter. He’s been hunting up here for more than 50 years. So, he came up hunting like he likes to do and he’s extremely familiar with the area and something happened to where he didn’t make it back home,” said Fresno County Sergeant Scott Weishaar.
Since then, search and rescue teams have been working around the clock with specialized equipment and trained personnel.
As authorities continue their efforts, the local hunting community is stepping in to help.
A member of the Facebook group “D7 Hunters 2.0” made a public post calling for volunteers, saying they want to form organized packs of people to aid in the search.
The hunter told FOX26 News that many locals are frustrated because the Forest Service isn’t allowing access to certain roads, roads that Dailey’s family says he often used during past hunts.
For many in the community, the desire to help is personal and urgent.
However, Fresno County Sheriff’s deputies addressed that concern directly, warning that uncoordinated searches could do more harm than good.
Lt. Kathy Curtice said, “Well, if the area is closed by the Forest Service, then maintain that respect for that closure. If the Forest Service has something closed or a locked gate, we still have the ability to go search for Ron or for anybody else that would go missing in that area.”
Authorities also explained how additional foot traffic could compromise key search efforts.
“I will say that…when we’re talking about searching in snow and even dirt, mud, and other things that we see up in that kind of environment, introducing more tracks into the area… a lot of times hinders us because we don’t know if it was somebody from the community that left those tracks or if it was Ron who left those tracks,” she said.
Weishaar said another hindering factor is that “…they may find that they get themselves in trouble and now we have to divert resources from original search effort to go help them.”
It happened to one person already that was trying to help in the search. Their car got stuck in the snowy conditions.
Still, officials say they do appreciate the public’s willingness to help.
“We absolutely love that so many people from the public want to come up and help and people have called asking how they can help,” said Weishaar.
But deputies emphasize that safety must come first.
They’re encouraging people to sign up through the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office website or the volunteer team site at FresnoSAR.org.
We would love to have you join so we can get you trained up and teach you how to help us search for missing people.
As of Friday, the following agencies have helped in the search efforts:
Madera countyKern countyCalaveras countyThe California Office of Emergency Services, which is providing surveillance aircraft
Deputies say more agencies around the state are expected to come this weekend so people can expect even more activity in the area.
Anyone with information on Dailey’s whereabouts is urged to call the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office right away.