Recorder Community Newspapers

By W. JACOB PERRY, Staff Writer

Staff Writer

BERNARDS TWP. – A massive search for an 85-year-old woman who disappeared from the Ridge Oak

senior citizens complex on Sunday afternoon, Aug. 12, had a happy ending when rescue workers found the

woman alive in a swampy field the next morning.

The overnight search involved everyone from police officers to trail-sniffing dogs to horseback teams to a

helicopter, with agencies from as far away as Bergen and Monmouth counties participating.

The woman, Elsie Rodeman, had taken her dog out for a walk at the complex off Manchester Drive on

Sunday afternoon, according to police. But when the dog returned alone at about 6:45 p.m., family members

became concerned and called police.

Five police officers and volunteers with the Basking Ridge Fire Company and First Aid Squad responded and

searched the area but were unable to find Rodeman. Police then set up their command trailer at Ridge Oak

and called in off-duty officers.

Police Chief Dennis Mott said additional help was sought from outside agencies that brought in six dogs from

assorted K-9 units. A request was then made for an Army National Guard helicopter with an infrared heat

detection device, which landed at nearby War Memorial Field at about 1:45 a.m., he said.

Through the night, Mott said, additional agencies were called as the search focused on a perimeter

encompassing Ridge Oak and Southard Park to the north.

At about 8:24 a.m., two rescuers and a search dog for New Jersey Search and Rescue, a Bergen County

agency, were walking in a swampy area to the rear of homes off North Maple Avenue when they heard a

woman respond to their calls, Mott said.

There, Rodeman was found and was pulled to safety from water and mud, the chief said. “We were elated to

find out she was alive and in good spirits.”

Rodeman experienced some hypothermia and was transported to Morristown Memorial Hospital, Mott said.

Temperatures during the night had ranged from 65 to 70 degrees.

According to a published report, Rodman told authorities she became disoriented while trying to find her dog,

which had gotten away from her. Mott, however, could not confirm that account.

“I was very proud of the police department, the Basking Ridge Fire Company and Rescue Squad, and all of

the numerous law enforcement and search professionals, volunteers, search teams, K-9 units and

specialized units that assisted us in our search for Mrs. Rodeman,” Mott said.

Among the agencies that participated in the search were the Long Hill Township Police Department,

Somerset County Park Commission’s Lord Stirling Stables ATV and Horseback Unit, Morris County Park

Police, Manville Police K-9 Unit, Central Jersey Technical Rescue Team, Manville Police K-9 Unit, Essex

County K-9 Unit, Bergen County Police Department, Passaic County Sheriff’s Department, Palisades Search

and Rescue, and Monmouth County Search and Rescue.

The search was not the first of its kind this year.

Back on Jan. 28, township police and other agencies quickly located an 8-year-old boy and a 7-year-old girl,

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