GREEN COVE SPRINGS – Three hearing impaired Orange Park residents, including two who are completely deaf, were found unharmed after getting lost Wednesday, July 29, while hiking on the Black Creek bicycle trail.
Using a Clay County Sheriff’s Office K-9 unit, deputies tracked down the Rosemary Stachowiac, Jessica Davis and Marc Bartholomewn, who had followed the trail about one mile into the swamp west of U.S. 17, the Sheriff’s Office said.
The three were treated for dehydration and exhaustion at the scene but did not require being hospitalized, the Sheriff’s Office said.
When deputies arrived they made contact by cell phone with the victims, one of which is hard of hearing. But they could not locate them. That’s when K-9 unit Sgt. Mike Seymour and Santo was called in to locate the three hikers, who live in the 600 block of Filmore Street.
It took about two hours to get them out of the swamp because one of the victims lost their shoes and they were exhausted, the report says.
July 30th 2009 - 9:12PM