MAMMOTH HOT SPRINGS, Wyoming, Sept. 24, 2021 (Gephardt Daily) — The search for a missing Ogden man in Yellowstone National Park has transitioned from a rescue to a recovery effort five days after crews located the body of his half-brother along the east shore of Shoshone Lake, officials said Friday.
Crews located the body of Mark O’Neill, 67, on Monday, said a news release from the National Park Service.
O’Neill, from Chimacum, Washington, and his half-brother, Kim Crumbo, 74, from Ogden, were reported overdue by a family member Sunday from their four-night backcountry trip to Shoshone Lake.
Both O’Neill and Crumbo are National Park Service retirees, and Crumbo is a former Navy Seal.
“On Sunday, Sept. 19, park crews located a vacant campsite with gear on the south side of Shoshone Lake, as well as a canoe, paddle, personal flotation device and other personal belongings on the east shore of the lake,” the news release said. “Crews located the body of O’Neill along the east shore during the morning of Monday, Sept. 20.”
A follow-up news release Friday says that after five days of searching, efforts to locate Crumbo have transitioned from rescue to recovery.
“During the last five days, crews swept all the trails in the area, searched the entire Shoshone Lake shoreline by boat and gridded the open water by helicopter,” the news release said. “Unfortunately, they did not find Crumbo.”
Friday, crews from the National Park Service’s Submerged Research Center will begin using sonar equipment to detect clues in the water. Park search crews continue to search for Crumbo by foot and boat, with assistance from Grand Teton National Park’s interagency helicopter. Recovery efforts will continue for the next several days as conditions warrant.
“This incident remains under investigation,” the news release said. “While we cannot comment further about the specifics of this investigation, we will provide updates when appropriate to do so.”
If you have information that could help investigators piece together a timeline of events, or if you were in the Shoshone Lake area between Sept. 12-19 and have any information, you are asked to contact officials at 307-344-2428 or [email protected].
“A sincere thank you to the public who have expressed interest in assisting with the search,” the news release said. “We ask the public to maintain distance from any law enforcement personnel and search crews, equipment, vehicles and their related activity for the safety of the public in this remote area and to protect the integrity of our work.”
Shoshone Lake, the park’s second-largest lake, is located at the head of the Lewis River southwest of West Thumb. At 8,050 acres, its average year-round temperature is about 48 degrees Fahrenheit. Survival time is estimated to be only 20 to 30 minutes in water of this temperature. Learn more about boating regulations and safety in the park here.
