Search and rescue

Published 5:00 am Monday, October 28, 2013

A Southern Oregon woman recently spent the night bundled with her infant son in a hollowed-out tree after wandering away from camp. Now, she said she’s training to become one of the search-and-rescue volunteers who spent a September night searching for her. Billie-Jean Biria got turned around en route to retrieving her son’s red beanie, which fell from his head Sept. 17. “I took for granted I knew where I was going,” Biria said. With her son and two dogs in tow, Biria found the beanie but lost her way and had to take shelter. The next day, she heard her husband’s truck and ran to a nearby road, where she found dozens of search and rescue volunteers. “I didn’t know I was such a big deal,” Biria said. “It was a lot of people. I was amazed and thankful.” The numerous volunteers were from California and Oregon search and rescue teams.

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