Search team that found missing plane in Michigan's Lake Huron aims to help more families
(CBS DETROIT) – The search and recovery team that found a crash victim and airplane lost 17 years ago in Michigan's Lake Huron said it's hoping to help even more people find their lost loved ones.
"Since this story went out on Wednesday, we've had already two other families contact us about cases they'd like us to look into," said Jim Scholz, the founder and president of Great Lakes Search and Recovery, a nonprofit that searches for people lost in the water.
Scholz said he and the other volunteers do what they do to try and bring closure to families.
"You're watching the pain of the family. And there's very little you can do for that pain, other than possibly bring back their lost person," Scholz said.
The family of the passenger killed in the 2007 Lake Huron crash hired Great Lakes Search and Recovery to find their loved one.
Scholz said it took months of preparations, looking into police and media reports of the crash, tracking where debris and the pilot's body were recovered, and studying drift and current patterns.
"We knew we didn't have to look where MSP had looked," Scholz said. "There was no doubt if it had been in that area, they would have found it. So we just expanded to the next area on the list and found it pretty much where we thought it might be.
Scholz said the family told him they were thankful for the resolution after all these years.
"Answering a lot of unanswered questions. And helping write the final chapters and bring closure to the story," Scholz said.
Great Lakes Search and Recovery is accepting donations for new sonar technology that will help them search in low-visibility conditions.