(WWJ) It was a relief to law enforcement and loved ones when three people who disappeared while tubing in West Michigan were found alive on Friday, after a large-scale search.
Michigan State Police say 28-year-olds Jazmin Hock and Sarah Vida, and Vida's 9-year-old son, Kayden Kovalcik are back home after spending a few days lost in the woods last week.
The trip was reported missing Tuesday evening (8/4) after one woman's father went looking for her, and found her vehicle's window broken. After searching on Thursday, police said two inflatable tubes and footprints were found along the Muskegon River. Police noted that the tubes were inflatable pool floats, and were not river floatation devices.
On Friday, Michigan State Police Lt. Pat Agema told WWJ's Beth Fisher they were searching by water and by air, with dogs and with thermal cambers in dense woods along the river.
Agema said one good thing was that the river is not deep and was not flowing at a fast pace in that area. Still, he asked the public to stay away, and allow police to do their work.
In an update later Friday, MSP said Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR) officers and a search dog found all three missing people alive, at around 4:40 p.m.
MSP said the three were in a heavily wooded area about three-quarters of a mile from Mill Iron Boat Launch. That’s about 7 miles from Maple Island Boat Launch near the community of Bridgeton, where they went into the water on Tuesday.
Agema said the three got out of the water at some point, and found themselves lost in the woods
"They all were extricated out," Agema said. "The boy hopped on the back of one of our DNR officers and was carried out. But the first thing he said, he asked for some orange juice. They didn't have any orange juice, and the boy said. 'I could drink a hundreds glass bottled root beers right now.'"
All three were dehydrated and scratched up, but they're going to be OK, Agema said. The woman were taken to a hospital for treatment of foot infections.
The MSP Fifth Districted, in a post on X, thanked a long list of law enforcement agencies that helped with the search.
"It was truly remarkable to see so many highly trained professionals from multiple agencies come together by establishing a Unified Command, share resources, and work as one team toward a common goal," MSP said. "We also want to thank the public for their patience, cooperation, and the information provided throughout the search."
MSP added, "We are grateful that this search concluded with a positive outcome."
Agema said this event serves as a reminder to take the proper equipment with you, and always let people know where you're going.
