Steep, rugged terrain was being searched at Great Smoky Mountains National Park for a missing Ohio woman/NPS

Drone pilots were assisting ground teams Saturday in search efforts for a missing Ohio woman at Great Smoky Mountains National Park, where more than 100 personnel were looking for the 53-year-old. 

Better weather arrived Saturday for the hunt for Mitzie Sue "Susan" Clements, who was hiking with her daughter in the Clingmans Dome area on Tuesday when she went missing. Park staff said the daughter got a bit ahead of her mother on the trail, and when she turned back to look for her she couldn't find her.

Trained personnel from cooperating agencies in Tennessee, North Carolina, and Virginia have responded to assist park staff in the large-scale search effort in steep, rugged terrain.

Helicopters and multiple canine teams were deployed for the search effort. Specialized search and rescue drones, operated by FAA-licensed pilots, were being used in some areas to help search for Clements. Searchers have worked through rain, fog, wind and low temperatures in the 40s over the last several days in this mountainous region that straddles two states and several counties.

Saturday’s forecast called for clearer skies and drier air, a welcome change for search personnel.

Blackhawk helicopter landing at Clingmans Dome, Great Smoky Mountains National Park/NPS

By closing the seven-mile Clingmans Dome Road on Thursday night, the park was able to transform the Clingmans Dome parking area into a field “incident command post” from which to manage the complex search. Infrastructure such as tents and self-contained mobile command busses serve as portable offices for search personnel and provide a place for searchers to escape the elements, refuel, and receive instructions before heading back out to continue the search for Clements.

Verizon Wireless established a mobile cell booster, which was providing the critical cell and data coverage needed to effectively manage and support the search effort. Even the closed road itself has been used as a landing zone for aircraft that are assisting in the search as weather permits. 

Additional volunteer searchers were not being sought, as search operations were limited to trained searchers to enable a systematic, thorough search of the area.

“This is unforgiving terrain, and we are working long hours to find Ms. Clements,” said acting Chief Ranger Jared St. Clair. “We are extremely grateful for the rapid response by so many well-trained personnel and the generous support resources that our cooperators have dedicated to this search.”

Susan Clements was last seen on the Forney Ridge Trail approximately a quarter-mile from Andrews Bald on Tuesday, September 25, at 5 p.m. She is a white female with light brown hair and blue eyes, is 5’6” tall, and weighs 125 pounds. She was wearing a green zip-up sweater, black workout pants over black leggings, a clear rain poncho, and white tennis shoes with purple laces.

Anyone who saw Clements on Tuesday afternoon or since then is asked to contact the National Park Service Investigative Services Branch through one of the following methods:  1-888-653-0009, www.nps.gov/isb and click “submit a tip,” email [email protected], or via a message on Facebook at “InvestigativeServicesNPS,” or Twitter @SpecialAgent