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Manhunt for Travis Decker reaches day 8 with heavy law enforcement presence in the North Cascades
Saturday marks day eight in the search for Travis Decker.
He is the Wenatchee man accused of kidnapping and killing his three young daughters.
Authorities are focusing in on the Cascade Mountains. The Enchantments are shut down until further notice.
As of Saturday afternoon, the National Guard is also joining the crews after emergency funding put in place by Governor Bob Ferguson.
The search command center off Icicle Road is crawling with activity into the weekend as hundreds of law enforcement officers head into the mountains.
Saturday morning was especially active as helicopters brought in dozens of crews from the Cascades and switched them out with new crews ready to get to work.
Erik Hampton with East Cascade SWAT tells us they are heavily resourced and have the best of the best out there, but the steep terrain is not easy to search through.
'It's very steep it's very thick and it's big country there's a lot of it. There's a lot of ways in and out,' Hampton said.
Icicle Road out of Leavenworth leads to dozens of trails and campgrounds. Normally on a hot June weekend, it's full of backpackers, hikers, and campers. Today, it's empty as the area is still shut down due to the search.
'We are hoping to exhaust this area for any sign of him we are not going to leave any stone unturned,' Hampton said. 'We are doing operations into the night, we have done them since Monday the same thing so we are working hard.'
Federal, state, and local resources are flooding the Enchantments actively searching for Travis Decker.
Right now, those resources include helicopters from Spokane, Chelan, and King County Sheriff's Offices along with the Coast Guard, National Guard, and Border Patrol.
Deputies say there is also law enforcement officers and special teams from local, state, and federal resources combing every inch of the mountains.
Hampton tells us they are also using special equipment to detect body heat levels as well.
About 100 years away from the command center is Leavenworth Outdoor Center.
The owner, David Johnson, said they have been listening to the helicopters fly just feet above their building since Tuesday.
He tells us even the tourists know who Travis Decker is.
'Everyone seems to be bringing it up now, the first couple of days it was shocking and people weren't talking about it, but now it's all-over social media and customers are asking about it when they get here,' Johnson said.
He tells us this is normally a packed area, but with the closure not that far down Icicle, it's been a bit slower.
On Saturday, the closure turnaround spot was full of people who say they came out to hike but didn't realize they couldn't go back there.
'Well it is really disappointing I was really excited for this,' said Mayra Salgadl, a hiker trying to get to Colchuck Lake.
Hampton said anyone they found inside the Okenagon Forest was asked to leave immediately.
'There were quite a few people when we started, I don't have an exact count for you on that, but it's blank in there right now,' Hampton said.
He tells us that area takes a special expertise to look through properly.
'It's very steep, it's very thick and it's big country there's a lot of it. There's a lot of ways in and out,' Hampton said.
But for those who live inside the search bubble, police are urging you to just call 911 if you think you see Decker.
'No do not approach, he is dangerous, he is a dangerous person,' Hampton said.
