A 38-year-old man who had been missing in the woods for 42 hours is found alive. Washburn County Sheriff Terry Dryden says the man had medical problems and would have died if rescuers hadn't found him as quickly as they did.

Dryden says the K9 named Vador and his handler Deputy Harrington found the man about 30 minutes after they got to the scene. They found the man in the woods about 200 yards from his house in the town of Barronett on Thursday around 1:15 p.m.

Dryden says the man had “suffered great anguish and pain” during the 42 hours he was missing. The sheriff has not released the man’s name. Dryden says the 38-year-old was semi-conscious when he was taken to the Shell Lake Hospital for treatment.

See the press release below for more details and watch WEAU 13 News at 5 and 6 p.m. for updates to this breaking news story.

News Release:

On Thursday, July 31, 2008, at approximately 12:45 p.m., a search and rescue operation was initiated by the Washburn County Sheriff's Office in an attempt to locate a missing and medically endangered resident of the Township of Barronett.

Information was received that a 38-year-old male subject who was suffering medical complications, had been missing for approximately 42 hours. Assistance in the search was requested of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources aircraft as well as officers from the Washburn County Sheriff's Office, the Washburn County Sheriff's Office K9 Unit, the Shell Lake Police Department, and the Wisconsin State Patrol.

The Washburn County Sheriff's Office's new K9, Vador, and handler Deputy Harrington were on scene for approximately 30 minutes prior to the K9 Unit locating the missing individual approximately 200 yards away from the missing man's residence. Observations made by officers at the scene indicate that the missing individual had suffered great anguish and pain during his stay for over 40 hours in the wooded area.

Once located, a rescue operation was effected and the missing individual was recovered from the wooded area by the crew of the North Ambulance along with law enforcement. The individual was taken in a semi-conscious state to the Shell Lake Hospital for medical treatment.

The actions during this incident of Deputies Helstern, Harrington, and K9 Vador, by quickly locating this individual, undoubtedly saved the life of this young man. Sheriff Dryden states that he is very proud of the personnel involved in recovering this missing man and is especially pleased with the outstanding job done by Washburn County Sheriff's Office's newest member, K9 Vador. With less than two months in service, Vador is already exhibiting what an asset he can be to the Washburn County Sheriff's Office.