Alaska Department Of Public Safety,State Troopers Public Information Office

Dispatch Text:

On October 1, 2024, the Alaska State Troopers in Fairbanks initiated a search for two overdue hunters from Fort Yukon that were reported overdue. A DPS Cessna 206 was used to search the various rivers and sloughs near Fort Yukon with no signs of the two men upon initial search that was paused for the night. On October 2, searching continued by air using DPS helo-2 and a department fixed-wing Caravan along with Civil Air Patrol, a RCC Blackhawk based out of Fort Wainwright and two volunteer boats from Fort Yukon. At 2:00 pm on the 2nd, the two overdue hunters floated into the village of Beaver with a broken down motor and called to report they were okay. They stated their motor broke down and they have been camping and floating down the Yukon River for the past nine days. All searchers have been recalled from the field and accounted for.