As report by WMTV-15 Madison, WI
Posted on Saturday, July 19, 2014
82-year-old Fitchburg man, Guillermo DeVenecia, has been safely found by volunteer searchers. He was found around 1:00 p.m. standing in a bean field near Whalen and Mutchler Roads in Fitchburg.
______________________________________________________
Updated on Monday, July 21, 2014
David Lesh owns a ski and snowboard outerwear company based in Colorado. The Colorado resident purchased a drone to film aerial ski and snowboard videos. This weekend, while visiting his girlfriend’s family in Fitchburg, he found a new use for his drone that he never expected.
“I never thought that I would be using it to find somebody,” Lesh said.
When he heard about 82-year-old Guillermo DeVenecia, who had been missing for three days, he figured he’d step in to help.
After a three day search with a helicopter, search dogs and hundreds of volunteers, Lesh sent up his drone to look at a 200-acre bean field, from about 200 feet in the air.
“I thought what would happen would be we’d be able to give them the piece of mind to cross of some more areas quickly,” said Katie Gorman, Lesh’s girlfriend.
In what would have taken volunteers hours to search on foot, in just 20 minutes Lesh had combed through most of the field.
As they headed to the final corner of the field, Lesh noticed a man standing in the middle of it…
Guillermo DeVenecia was found to be responsive, but dehrydated. He was reunited with his family members. It is unclear how DeVenecia ended up in the field or if he had been continuing to walk in to the area since going missing on July 16th.
Watch the video above or click the link below to read the complete story by WMTV-15 News…
Family uses drone to help locate missing man
Rich Hanson
AMA Government and Regulatory Affairs
Great news and thanks for the information!