SWAN VALLEY — Several search and rescue squads spent Saturday night and all day Sunday responding to a series of five 911 call hangups they received Saturday night from an isolated area on the border between Lake and Flathead counties.

Lake County 911 dispatchers were able to use GPS technology to locate the cell phone source of these calls, which Lake County Sheriff Lucky Larson said originated somewhere in the mountain range between Blacktail Ski Hill and Lake Mary Ronan. Due to the location of the call and the belief that it may be a lost skier or snowmobiler out in the cold, Larson put out a search.

The Lake County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue team as well as Swan Mission Search and Rescue units searched the area, but Larson said bad cell phone service prevented dispatchers from getting any information from the caller.

“We put people on site, day and night, and found nothing,” Larson said. “We had several crews out there kicking around snow, searching from the ground and by air via helicopter, but, still nothing.”

After the search was called off Sunday night, sheriff’s investigators have deemed the 911 calls as “unfounded” as no person has been reported missing in the past few days.

Anyone with information of a possible missing person who would have been in that area this weekend should call the Sheriff’s Office at 883-7301.

Plum Creek awards $5K grant to Search and Rescue

— The Plum Creek Foundation recently awarded a $5,000 grant to Swan Mission Search and Rescue to help fund renovations on an existing building and new construction of an additional building.

The planned renovation of the new building will include a new pitched roof to be constructed over the existing one. A dormer will be placed above the entrance and the roof will be finished with metal roofing.

The new building will house the squad’s rescue equipment and vehicles, as well as provide space for a training facility and office space. Equipment and vehicles are currently housed at the members’ homes.

“Swan Mission Search and Rescue has never had a true home office or the facilities needed to house our equipment,” SMSAR Vice President Carol Field said. “We are grateful to Plum Creek for its generosity and support of helping to keep the residents of our community safe.”

Swan Mission Search and Rescue was established in 1958 with the mission to aid and assist in saving lives, recovering and preserving property and providing aid to those in need. The non-profit organization consists of volunteer members who are dedicated to helping the community of Lake County.