A search covering extremely difficult, swampy terrain north of Duluth has so far failed to locate a man missing for more than two weeks.
The St. Louis County Sheriff's Office reported Monday that a person on an ATV located a Dodge Intrepid stuck on a remote trail in a wooded, swampy area north of Fredenberg Township last Saturday. The car was determined to be the same one that Edward LePage, 63, was last seen driving.
LePage was last seen on the 5800 block of North Pike Lake Road on July 31, according to previous reports from Duluth police.
A search in the vicinity of the car started Saturday night and continued this week, focused on areas within walking distance of the car. Personnel from the St. Louis County Rescue Squad have been assisted at times by a Minnesota Army National Guard helicopter, drones and K-9s.
The rescue squad had eight to 10 people searching for LePage on Thursday afternoon, said squad Capt. Rick Slatten. He explained that the terrain has made searching difficult because it's a recently logged area covered with new saplings, coupled with thick ground cover.
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"It's hard to see; it's hard to move. The primary area that we're searching in is not the kind of area that's conducive to big grid patterns so we're using our K-9s. The weather hasn't really been favorable. When you get hot days with no wind, it really reduces the effectiveness and endurance of the dogs," Slatten said.
He added that Wednesday and Thursday's cool, rainy weather has made for better search conditions.
Authorities have said they don't need help from the public with the ground search, but anyone who may have had contact with LePage in the past two weeks is asked to contact Duluth police or the St. Louis County Sheriff's Office by calling 911 or (218) 336-4350. LePage is described as 6 feet 1 inch tall, weighing 200 pounds and walking with a distinctive limp.
