BERKELEY SPRINGS, W.Va. - A police helicopter, K-9 units and fire and rescue workers were called in to assist the Morgan County Sheriff's Department in a search for a Baltimore hiker reported lost in a wooded area off W.Va. 9 Wednesday afternoon, according to Chief Deputy Ronald McIntire.
The hiker was found before the dogs arrived, McIntire said.
Keith Crowder, 41, was reported missing by friend Julio Smith, of Baltimore, after the two were separated during a hike in the woods in the Spruce Pine Hollow area, he said.
After waiting for Crowder to catch up with him, Smith flagged down a passerby to call the sheriff's department, McIntire said.
Deputies arrived shortly after 2 p.m., he said.
While the trails would have led Crowder out of the woods eventually, there was a concern for his health because of the heat, McIntire said. The area - popular with hikers - is hilly and heavily forested, he said.
