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Human Trackers - Accelerating the Search for Missing Persons · Murder Files Unsealed

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Ever get chills thinking about being stranded in the wilderness,
• 0:04
  phone dead, weather turning sour. It's the kind of scenario
• 0:07
  that makes you appreciate the skill set of folks who
• 0:10
  can find you without needing a GPS signal. That's what
• 0:14
  we're diving into today.
• 0:15
  Speaker 2: It's fascinating how in our hyper connected world some of
• 0:19
  the oldest skills are still the most effective.
• 0:21
  Speaker 1: Right. And this isn't some theoretical survival scenario. This is
• 0:25
  about a recent case in Pine County, Minnesota, where a
• 0:28
  woman searching for her lost dogs near Lake Alma ended
• 0:31
  up needing rescuing herself. Freezing temperature snow. It was like
• 0:35
  something out of a.
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  Speaker 2: Movie, and the conditions made this search incredibly difficult. Think
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  howling winds, messing with any equipment that relies on sound,
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  lakes and swamps not quite frozen solid. It was dangerous
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  for everyone involved.
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  Speaker 1: Talk about pressure. The Pine County Sheriff's Department search and
• 0:51
  rescue team was up against it. What's the size of
• 0:53
  a team like that anyway, So.
• 0:55
  Speaker 2: The entire Sheriff's office is thirty seven people, but the
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  dedicated search and rescue team is fourteen strong. Deputies, investigators, sergeants,
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  a real cross section of expertise, and if you include
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  their drone team, you're looking at almost twenty people ready
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  to deploy.
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  Speaker 1: Okay, that's a serious commitment to finding lost folks. This
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  isn't just a couple of volunteers with.
• 1:15
  Speaker 2: Flashlights, Absolutely not, and their training reflects that these teams
• 1:19
  are prepping for all sorts of situations, constantly honing your skills,
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  which is critical because as more people explore the outdoors,
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  the chances of someone needing rescue, well, it's only a
• 1:29
  matter of time.
• 1:30
  Speaker 1: This case is a perfect example of that. So walk
• 1:32
  us through it. We've got this woman lost in brutal
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  weather for the first steps.
• 1:37
  Speaker 2: The initial search started on December seventeenth. Family and friends
• 1:40
  were already out there, soon joined by the Sheriff's department,
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  tribal police, even a canine unit. Every minute counts in
• 1:47
  those conditions. They were gathering information, trying to nail down
• 1:50
  a timeline, but the weather was wreaking havoc.
• 1:53
  Speaker 1: I bet the wind alone must have been deafening.
• 1:56
  Speaker 2: It was a huge obstacle. The canines were having trouble
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  picking up a scent, and even their audio equipment was
• 2:01
  useless because of the wind, plus the partially frozen water
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  added a whole other layer of danger. One wrong step.
• 2:08
  Speaker 1: And it's making my stomach clench just thinking about it.
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  Speaker 2: So with all these factors working against them, how did
• 2:14
  they finally find her? This is where the human trackers
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  come in, right.
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  Speaker 1: It's where they truly shine. The next morning, two certified
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  trackers were sent to the woman's last known location. Now,
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  most of us might see footprints in the snow and
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  think that's it. But these trackers, they're trained to notice
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  what we miss. They're looking for what's called a signature print.
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  Speaker 2: Okay, I'm hooked. What's a signature print and how is
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  it different from a regular footprint. It's not just about
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  the shape of the print, it's about the story it tells. See,
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  a signature print captures those unique characteristics that set it apart.
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  Maybe is the depth of the impression hint to get
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  the person's weight, or how fast they were moving, or
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  the way the soils disturbed around the edges, telling you
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  about the type of footwhere these trackers are like detectives,
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  piecing to get the other clues most of us wouldn't
• 3:01
  even register.
• 3:02
  Speaker 1: So they're looking beyond just a footprint to understand the
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  mechanics of how someone moved through that environment.
• 3:09
  Speaker 2: That's incredible, exactly, and in this case it gets even cooler.
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  They're not just looking at footprints in the snow because
• 3:14
  snow melt's right. They're looking at the compressed soil underneath
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  broken branches, even the way the vegetation has been disturbed.
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  It's about understanding the subtle ways humans impact their surroundings,
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  even when they're treated not to.
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  Speaker 1: It's like their superpower, seeing these invisible signs. So using
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  these signature prints, these breadcrumb trails of behavior, what were
• 3:34
  the trackers able to tell the search team?
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  Speaker 2: They were able to push the last known location of
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  this woman a mile and a half further than anyone
• 3:42
  else had gotten. A mile and a half might not
• 3:44
  sound like much when you're driving, but on foot in
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  those conditions it's huge.
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  Speaker 1: It's practically a marathon. And in a rescue situation, that's
• 3:52
  not just distance, it's time saved, which could be the
• 3:55
  difference between life or death. So the trackers did their thing,
• 3:59
  gave the team this invaluable lead. What happened next.
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  Speaker 2: The search intensifies. Right now everyone is working with a
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  clear picture, but the terrain is still rough, the woods
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  are dense, and the clock is ticking. They know this
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  woman is out there, exposed to the elements.
• 4:13
  Speaker 1: I can't imagine the tension. It's a race against time
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  and nature's not playing fair.
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  Speaker 2: And yet their dedication paid off. They found her shortly
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  after one fifty pm, safe, thankfully, but definitely showing signs
• 4:24
  of the cold.
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  Speaker 1: That must have been a huge relief for everyone involved.
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  But what finally led them to her was it another
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  tracking breakthrough.
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  Speaker 2: The trackers played a vital role in narrowing down the
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  search area, but sometimes it's a combination of factors. She
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  had been following the trail, you see, but at some
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  point the signage wasn't clear and she got turned around.
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  Speaker 1: So she was in the right general area, just disoriented exactly.
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  Speaker 2: And luckily two officers were at a good position on
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  high ground and they hurt her yelling. At the same
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  time the landowner who had been assisting with the search
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  on it side by side. He heard her too.
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  Speaker 1: It's like everything converged at the right moment or calls
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  for help, their attentiveness.
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  Speaker 2: It really underscores how crucial communication and coordination are in
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  those situations. Every person, Every skill set played a part.
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  Speaker 1: This case is a powerful testament to the dedication and
• 5:14
  expertise of the Pine County Search and Rescue team. But
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  I'm curious. This wasn't their first rescue?
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  Speaker 2: Was it?
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  Speaker 1: What made this one stand out to them?
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  Speaker 2: You're right, they've tackled their share of searches, but this
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  one was special for one key reason. It was the
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  first major case where their certified human trackers got to
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  put all that training into action in a real world scenario.
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  Speaker 1: A baptism by snowstorm. That must have been validating for them,
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  not just to have the skills, but to see how
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  they directly impacted a rescue.
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  Speaker 2: Absolutely, this case cemented the value of having specialized skills
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  like tracking on the team. It wasn't theoretical anymore. It
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  was a woman's life saved.
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  Speaker 1: It makes you wonder, in our increasingly tech dependent world,
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  are we overlooking the power of these ancient skills. I mean,
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  we've got GPS, drones, all this fancy equipment. Some times
• 6:00
  it's the human element that makes the difference.
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  Speaker 2: That's the question, isn't it. And I think this case
• 6:05
  in Pine County offers a compelling answer. While technology has
• 6:08
  its place. The ability to observe, to read the subtle
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  language of the natural world. That's something technology can't replicate.
• 6:16
  Speaker 1: It's a good reminder that even in the age of smartphones,
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  some of the most valuable tools are the ones we've
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  had all along, our senses, our powers of observation or
• 6:23
  connection to the world around us. We've talked about the
• 6:26
  incredible skills of these human trackers and the dedication of
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  the Pine County Search and Rescue Team, but this isn't
• 6:31
  just about one lost woman in Minnesota, is it. This
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  feels like it has implications for all of us, It
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  really does.
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  Speaker 2: This case highlights a growing need for skilled trackers in
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  search and rescue efforts everywhere, especially as more and more
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  people are drawn to the outdoors hiking, camping, foraging.
• 6:48
  Speaker 1: And with those adventures comes inherent risk. Right you get lost,
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  injured Suddenly, those wilderness skills aren't just a hobby. They're
• 6:56
  a lifeline exactly.
• 6:58
  Speaker 2: And as we've seen, time is often the enemy in
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  these situations. Having someone who can rapidly and accurately interpret
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  the subtle signs someone's passed through an area that can
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  be the difference between a happy ending and a tragedy.
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  Speaker 1: It's like you said earlier, even in our tech driven world,
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  some of the oldest skills are still incredibly relevant, and.
• 7:17
  Speaker 2: There's skills we can all cultivate to some degree, even
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  if we're not training for search and rescue. Next time
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  you are out for a walk, take a moment to
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  really see the ground beneath you, the way the plants grow,
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  the patterns the wind makes. You might be surprised by
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  what you notice.
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  Speaker 1: It's like developing a whole new way of seeing the world.
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  Speaking of which, this case really got me thinking. It's
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  one thing to spot a footprint, but how do these
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  trackers know which way someone was headed? What if there
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  are animals around leaving their own tracks, how do you
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  tell it all apart.
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  Speaker 2: That's where the real artistry of tracking comes in. It's
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  not just about seeing the individual signs, but understanding the
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  story they tell together. For example, a train tracker might
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  notice that the spacing between footprints changes That could indicate
• 8:02
  someone was running, maybe injured and panicked. Or they might
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  spot scuff marks on one side of a footprint, a
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  sign someone was carrying a heavy load and dragging their foot.
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  Speaker 1: So it's like they're reading a language. Most of us
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  have forgotten how to speak the language of the forest.
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  Speaker 2: Floor precisely, and the more fluent you become in that language,
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  the more you can glean from even the smallest details.
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  A broken twig at a certain angle might tell you
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  about someone's height. A disturbed patch of moss could indicate
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  they stopped to rest. It's about piecing together those fragments
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  of information to build a narrative of what happened.
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  Speaker 1: This deep dive has been a real eye opener. I'm
• 8:37
  going to look at the world a little differently after this,
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  not just with more awareness of my surroundings, but also
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  with a deeper appreciation for the folks who dedicate their
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  time and skills to helping others.
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  Speaker 2: Well said, and remember, even if tracking isn't your calling,
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  the outdoors is something we can all enjoy. Just be
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  sure to let someone know your plans, bring a map
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  and compass, and know how that a signal for help
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  if you need it. A little preparation can go a
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  long way.
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  Speaker 1: Great advice. This story is a powerful reminder that sometimes
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  the simplest tools and techniques are the most effective, and
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  that in the age of GPS and smartphones, there's still
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  a vital place for the ancient art of human tracking.
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  Speaker 2: Absolutely so, the next time you find yourself walking through
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  the woods, take a moment to look around, to really
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  observe the ground beneath your feet. You won't be surprised
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  at what stories it has to.
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  Speaker 1: Tell until next time. Keep exploring, keep learning, and stay curious.