Man vanished after ice surfing on Missouri River days ago, cops say. He’s still missing

A man has been missing for several days after he was last seen ice surfing on the Missouri River, officials said, and state officials and volunteers have mounted a search effort.

Aaron Duenke, 34, was seen paddling down the Missouri River on a chunk of ice near Washington on Tuesday, Dec. 27, Cpl. Logan Bolton, a spokesperson for the Missouri State Highway Patrol Water Patrol Division, told McClatchy News.

Afterwards, Duenke was not seen or heard from again, Bolton said.

“His family tried to contact him and received no answer,” Bolton said. “And no one saw him go into the water.”

Before he disappeared, officers spoke to Duenke, a carpenter, who said he didn’t need assistance and that he “had done this before,” according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

A Dec. 27 Facebook post written by a friend said they are hoping Duenke safely made it to land and lost his phone.

The Highway Patrol’s water division and “civilian search teams” swept several miles of riverbanks seeking signs of Duenke.

However, frigid conditions and lack of information have hindered the effort, according to Bolton.

Because no one saw Duenke fall into the river, there is not a “pinpointed location to start from,” he said. Additionally, officials have not been able to safely navigate the icy river on boats.

Drones have instead conducted an aerial search for Duenke, Bolton said.

Duenke’s family told the St. Louis Dispatch on Thursday, two days after he went missing, that they remained hopeful he’d be located alive.

“I actually believe he’s still out there,” his brother told the outlet.

Earlier this year, a paraglider also went missing after landing in the Missouri River, according to the EMissourian. He has not been found.

This story was originally published December 30, 2022 at 1:01 PM with the headline "Man vanished after ice surfing on Missouri River days ago, cops say. He’s still missing."