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@Multcoso
The Multnomah County Sheriff's Office (MCSO) rescued a lost, visually impaired hiker near Wahkeena Falls on Wednesday, November 27.
At approximately 5:30 p.m., MCSO responded to a 911 call from a man saying he was lost on a hiking trail near Wahkeena Falls. The man, who reported being visually impaired, said that he was using his cell phone’s flashlight to find his way, but was unable to see the trail markers. He also mentioned that he was hiking with alone. His wife, who he’d been hiking with, returned to the car.
One deputy located the man’s wife at the Multnomah Falls welcome center, while the second deputy contacted the man through text message. They advised him to stop moving and stay put until help arrived. Deputies were able to get his location using cell phone data.
At 6:55 p.m., a small team of deputies known as the Green Hornets deployed to locate the man. The MCSO Green Hornets consists of a team of highly trained deputies with extensive wilderness and search and rescue experience. The Green Hornets team reached the lost hiker at 7:45 p.m. He was not hurt, and they safely guided him back to the trailhead, where he was reunited with his wife.
The Green Hornets team is a special team within the MCSO Search and Rescue operations. They are called upon to assist with quick, foot searches for missing or lost hikers, and they work alongside the larger Search and Rescue team when needed. Many of the deputies are backcountry trail runners and considered navigational experts.
MCSO is grateful for the quick thinking and teamwork of our deputies that led to the successful rescue of this hiker.
If you are ever lost or in distress while hiking, remember to stay where you are and call 911 for help. Read more about our Search and Rescue program and the Ten Essentials, on our website.
Watch a video about the Green Hornets, here.
Photo Description: MCSO Green Hornets training on Dog Mountain in 2022.
Update: Elaina Schaffer's height corrected to 5'3" tall.
The Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) is asking for the public’s help in locating a teenager from Fairview, Oregon, who ran away from home.
Elaina Vira Schaffer was last seen at her home on October 21, 2024. Based on information from her mother and neighbor, investigators believe she ran away sometime after 12:20 a.m. She did not take her cell phone with her. Since then, Elaina has been spotted multiple times in east Multnomah County, including Gresham, Fairview, and Troutdale. The last sighting was in Troutdale on November 9, 2024.
Elaina is a 14-year-old white female with blue eyes and brown or black hair. She is 5’3” tall and weighs about 130 pounds. The day she ran away, she was seen wearing a black hoodie, black pants, and black slippers.
If you see Elaina, please call 911 right away and reference MCSO case #24-43426. If you have information regarding her whereabouts, please call the Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office at 503-988-4300.
Search and rescue volunteers rescued a pair of hikers Friday night in the Columbia River Gorge.
Around 6 p.m., on November 15, 2024, dispatchers received a text message from two hikers, reporting they were stranded in the dark on the Larch Mountain Trail. Multnomah County sheriff’s deputies and MCSOSAR certified search and rescue volunteers responded to the area to start searching for the hikers. The hikers reported they also had a dog.
Through the text message service, dispatchers were able to get the hikers’ GPS coordinates, which indicated they were approximately two miles from the trailhead at Multnomah Falls. Twenty-three certified volunteer searchers divided into teams and hiked into the area. Around 9:45 p.m., searchers located the hikers. The searchers guided the hikers, and their dog, down the trail safely. Neither the hikers nor their dog were hurt, and they walked out under their own power.
The hikers utilized Multnomah County’s Text-to-911 service because the cell phone service was too poor to make a reliable phone call.
“Text to 911 is a lifeline for those needing help and can’t make a call for safety reasons, or because they do not have strong enough cell service,” Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) Public Information Officer Chris Liedle said. “The hikers, in this case, also did the right thing by staying put until rescuers arrived, which made it easier for the crews to locate them.”
The hikers also reported that there is trail damage due to a landslide on the Larch Mountain Trail about a quarter mile south of the junction of the Wahkeena Falls and Larch Mountain Trails. MCSO obtained a photo on Saturday showing the damage to about 25 feet of trail.
The National Weather Service is forecasting heavy rain, and snow in elevations higher than 2,500 feet, starting Saturday night in the Columbia River Gorge and Cascades.
“Hikers should be careful when adventuring this time of year, especially in the Eagle Creek Fire burn scar,” Liedle continued. “Rain can increase the likelihood of landslides in these areas, causing washouts and making it difficult or dangerous to navigate.”
With the end of daylight saving time, the sun sets earlier, and MCSO would like to remind adventurers to be cognizant of when they start a hike. Forests often get darker sooner, and darkness can easily disorient even experienced hikers.
We would like to thank Corbett Fire and MCSOSAR for their efforts in making sure these hikers were located and returned safe. MCSOSAR is the primary search and rescue resource for Multnomah County. Their certified volunteers are trained in a wide variety of skills, such as medical, survival and navigation.
Packing the Ten Essentials whenever you step into the wilderness, even on day hikes, is good practice. On a routine trip, you may not use any items, but when something goes awry, having the Ten Essentials could be essential to your survival. Please visit our search and rescue webpage for more information on the Ten Essentials for hiking and to learn more about MCSOSAR.
Image description: Photo of landslide on the Larch Mountain Trail
Image description: Search and rescue volunteer readies for deployment
The Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) takes seriously its responsibility to engage community stakeholders about the services the agency provides. Policy and procedure serve as the foundation for all MCSO law enforcement operations, correctional operations, and business services. Policy provides members with the objectives, limits, and requirements that apply to their work for the public. Procedure provides detailed direction governing how a task is to be accomplished.
We invite the public to provide feedback on proposed policy and procedure(s) through a 30-day period known as the Stakeholder Review. During the policy’s Stakeholder Review, the public is encouraged to submit comments or proposals relevant to the content of the policy drafts. People who submit comments should be aware that their remarks become public record.
The Sheriff’s Office is currently in the process of reviewing the following draft(s):
- 120.00 Personnel Order
- 360.00 Duty to Intervene and Report Misconduct
- 700.00 Enforcement of Immigration and Customs Enforcement Detainers
To submit a comment, please go to our website.
Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback. We take individual comments into collective consideration as policy is finalized.
To sign up for email notifications when policy reviews occur or get additional press releases from the Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office, click here.
The Multnomah County Sheriff's Office (MCSO) Transit Police Division (TPD) is investigating a deadly crash involving a TriMet MAX train and a person.
On Tuesday, November 12, 2024, around 2:15 p.m., MCSO Transit Police responded to a 911 call that a person was struck by a MAX Blue Line train on East Burnside Street at Southeast 141st Avenue in Portland.
Portland police officers and Portland firefighters arrived and determined the person did not survive the collision. The person who died was identified as 61-year-old Anthony Davis, of Salem. Davis was part of a Moore Excavation, Inc. construction crew working on a project at the corner of East Burnside Street and Southeast 141st Avenue.
During the investigation, Transit Police deputies learned that Davis walked onto the tracks in front of a MAX Blue Line train traveling eastbound. The MAX train operator sounded the horn and attempted to stop the train using the emergency brake system. Unfortunately, the train did not stop in time. It’s not known why Davis was on the tracks. He did not use a pedestrian crossing.
As part of the investigation, East Burnside Street was closed in both directions between Southeast 139th and 143rd Avenues for about three hours. The Medical Examiner's Office is assisting with the investigation. No further information will be provided at this time.
Update: Make and model of the car corrected to Volkswagen Jetta.
The East County Vehicular Crimes Team (ECVCT) is investigating a serious, single vehicle crash in Wood Village that resulted in the death of one person.
On Tuesday, November 12, 2024, at around 11:20 p.m., Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) deputies responded to the 1000 block of NE 238th Drive, after receiving a report of a serious crash. Deputies determined that a Volkswagen Jetta crashed and the driver was ejected from the car. That driver, the only person in the car, was pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics.
Based on their investigation, ECVCT investigators believe the driver was not wearing a seat belt at the time of the crash. The Medical Examiner will determine if drugs or alcohol were a factor.
During the initial investigation, NE 238th Dr. was closed for several hours. The ECVCT investigation is ongoing. The name of the deceased driver will not be released until next of kin notifications are completed.
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The East County Vehicular Crimes Team (ECVCT) consists of specially trained law enforcement members from the Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office, Gresham Police Department and Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office. ECVCT investigates serious and fatal vehicle crashes and vehicular crimes in Gresham, Fairview, Maywood Park, Troutdale, Wood Village and unincorporated Multnomah County.
The Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office Transit Police Division is investigating an armed robbery that occurred Tuesday afternoon in the 4500 block of Southeast 122nd Avenue. Portland Police officers arrested the suspect tonight in the 12600 block of Southeast Ellis Street. You can read their press release on the event here.
Deputies learned the suspect, armed with a gun, stole an item from a person at a TriMet bus stop. The victim was not injured.
When the suspect is booked into the Multnomah County jail, the identity of the suspect can be released.
No further information about the criminal investigation will be released at this time.
We appreciate the Portland Police Bureau for their assistance to locate and arrest the suspect.
Image description: a parked Transit Police Division vehicle