Pocket wilderness is a name used by Bowater corporation and the State of Tennessee for any of several tracts of Bowater-owned private land on and near the Cumberland Plateau that the company set aside beginning in 1970 "for preservation in its natural state, with no logging or development other than hiking trails permitted within its boundaries" and registered as Tennessee state natural areas. Several areas formerly managed as Bowater pocket wilderness are now incorporated into state-owned natural areas or National Park Service sites. – – – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pocket_wilderness – – – Missing NPF will continue to monitor this case, and will update Mr. Williams' cause of death, and locational data as more information becomes available to the public.
According to 6ABC News, RHEA COUNTY, Tenn. (WATE) – The search remains ongoing for a missing North Carolina man in the Pocket Wilderness area of Dayton, Tennessee. According to WTVC, Rhea County Sheriff Mike Neal said Tuesday that Curtis Dustin Williams was last contacted on Monday, May 10. He went hiking on Monday with his dog and posted photos of his hike on his social media accounts. The Knox County Rescue Cave & Vertical Team was deployed to the area Saturday to assist in the search. Rhea County Detective Rocky Potter told WTVC that Williams’ dog was found early Thursday afternoon. K9 units were brought in to see if they can backtrack the dog’s path to find Williams. Potter also said searchers “pinged” his phone, but he was no sign of him in that spot. He was wearing a maroon shirt, a North Carolina hat, and shorts. If you have seen him, you’re asked to call 423-775-7837 or 911 immediately.
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Personal Characteristics
Male
Classification: DAY/NIGHT HIKER
Investigative Overview
Foul Play Suspected: Unknown / Undisclosed
Suspected Suicide: Unknown / Undisclosed
Cause of Death: Undetermined / Unreleased
Significant Dates
Reported missing on May 10, 2021 - 945 days, 4 hours, 31 minutes ago
Found on May 22, 2021 - 933 days, 4 hours, 31 minutes ago
This case file was posted on
May 20, 2021 at 21:35
This case file was last modified on
Jun 09, 2021 at 17:56
This case file has been assigned the Missing Persons ID 4203
Disclaimer
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Missing NPF lists “Foul Play Suspected,” “Suspected Suicide,” “Cause of Death,” and other elements of data in association with public reporting. These settings do not reflect the opinions of Missing NPF and/or its staff. Unless explicitly noted, Missing NPF does not publicize opinion, nor are any of the initial reports written – or edited – by members of Missing NPF. All content (with the exception of “IMPORTANT” notices, listed toward the top of applicable case files) are the works of external persons, sources and/or entities. All pictures displayed on this case file have been downloaded from the public domain, unless a user has commented or otherwise transmitted a picture to Missing NPF or its social media accounts. Case updates are derived from external persons, sources, and/or entities, and do not reflect the internal work of Missing NPF, unless expressly noted.
Judaea Rojo
July 11, 2021 at 6:44 pm5/22/21 Update: Curtis Williams was found deceased. More here: https://www.wrcbtv.com/story/43941407/update-11day-search-for-missing-hiker-in-rhea-county-comes-to-tragic-end
Judaea Rojo
July 11, 2021 at 6:43 pm5/18/21 Update: The Rhea County Sheriff’s Department are not excepting volunteers at this time. More here: https://newschannel9.com/news/local/1-week-later-community-joins-multi-state-search-for-hiker-lost-in-pocket-wilderness
Judaea Rojo
July 11, 2021 at 6:42 pm5/17/21 Update: The search for Curtis Williams continues. More here: https://newschannel9.com/news/local/1-week-later-community-joins-multi-state-search-for-hiker-lost-in-pocket-wilderness
Joss Leal
May 28, 2021 at 2:35 pmThe body of Curtis Dustin Williams has been located. No details on where the body was found, or the cause of death. We will place this file on a continuous follow-up status. Reference: https://www.wjbf.com/news/body-of-missing-north-carolina-hiker-in-rhea-county-found/
Joss Leal
May 28, 2021 at 2:28 pmPerforming an update check. Pending.