Search for snowmachiner faces weather challenge

Alaska State Troopers halted the search for a missing snowmachiner this afternoon as visibility became severely limited due to heavy snowfall.

Charles Palmer of Wasilla went missing Saturday evening near Bald Mountain and Sheep River.  Saturday, a group of five snowmachiners were out on a day snowmachine from their cabin about 5 miles from Mastadon Road near Talkeetna. Troopers were called Sunday morning about the missing man.  They found Palmer’s snowmachine near Sheep Creek, but no sign of him.  Poor weather conditions Sunday hampered search efforts.

Helo 1 was launched this morning and searchers on the ground continued looking for Palmer until this afternoon when the weather moved in again.  The search will resume when the weather permits.

State Troopers, a Talkeetna wildlife trooper, Talkeetna volunteer fire and rescue and Willow fire department are all involved in the search.