Contributed photo / North Carolina native Curtis Dustin Williams, who is in his 40s, went missing with his dog Monday, May 10, 2021, in the Laurel-Snow State Natural Area north of Dayton, Tenn.A search and rescue team looking for a hiker who went missing in the Laurel-Snow State Natural Area on May 10 reported early Saturday evening it had recovered the body of Curtis Dustin Williams.
“The search and rescue team did make a recovery of Mr. Williams,” Rhea County Sheriff’s Office investigator Rocky Potter said after 6:30 p.m. “They had widened their search this morning took in some extra volunteers, brought in some rappel teams from several different counties to work together. About two, two-and-a-half hours ago it went from a search and rescue to a recovery.”
Williams, who was in his 40s, was hiking with a dog in the area north of Dayton, Tennessee, and was last heard from around 5 p.m. on May 10 when he posted a photo on Facebook.
The dog that was with him was found three days later when it showed up on a farm, Potter told the Times Free Press.
Efforts to search for Williams included K-9 teams that attempted to backtrack the path of the man’s dog companion, a therapy dog he was taking care of for friends.
The recovery of Williams’ body was made in the Morgan Springs area of the Pocket Wilderness. Rescue crews had to contend with “rough topography,” Potter said.
“This took rappel teams, teams that had correct equipment and safety equipment to be able to hike this terrain,” he told Times Free Press news partner WRCB-TV. ” Today’s search was very intense and very tiring for everybody.”