Search still fails to find man

David Woods was last seen Monday.
By STEPHEN SIFF
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
NEW CASTLE, Pa. -- An all-day search by about 80 volunteers along a 5-mile stretch of the Shenango River failed to uncover the body of a hunter who police suspect drowned Monday near here.
The search began about 9 a.m. Saturday and was suspended at about 5 p.m. It is expected to resume today.
Saturday, trained dogs sniffing from boats and the shore directed dive teams to several potential spots, but divers did not find the body in the murky water.
Police say they are still treating the disappearance of David Woods, 55, of New Castle as a missing-person case.
When last seen
Woods was last seen about 10:30 p.m. Monday, hunting for raccoons from a canoe with his son-in-law, Anthony Mike, also of New Castle.
The canoe hit a snag and capsized, said Neshannock Township Police Superintendent Philip Carlo. Mike swam to the bank but then could not see Woods, he said.
The men were not wearing flotation jackets.
The search for Woods began immediately. Rescue workers found the capsized canoe. By daybreak Tuesday, nets were hung from a bridge over the river at Harbor Road, about 2 miles downstream from the accident site.
The Army Corps of Engineers lowered the water level in the river from about 10 feet to about 6 feet, to aid in the recovery of a body.
However, the Corps was forced to open the Sharpsville Dam back up at 2 p.m. Sunday, to avoid flooding further upstream.
On Saturday, volunteers from the Neshannock, Mahoning Township, Union, Pulaski, Crescent and Coraopolis fire departments and Neshannock police searched from the banks and with two inflatable motor boats. They were assisted by nine dogs and handlers from Canine Aided Emergency Search and Rescue.
Searches for the body have taken place daily, except Christmas, but the search Saturday was the largest effort.