'This is the right thing to do': 2,000 volunteers scour for clues in missing Wisconsin girl case

Jayme Closs, 13, has not been seen since she was abducted on Oct. 15.

October 23, 2018, 3:45 PM

Two-thousand volunteers are combing several miles of rural Barron, Wisconsin, Tuesday in the hopes of finding clues in the case of missing 13-year-old Jayme Closs.

As volunteers embarked on the ground search, they were told to keep their eyes open for anything that looked like it did not belong, like phones, weapons and clothing, said Barron County Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald.

PHOTO: Hundreds of volunteers gather, Oct. 23, 2018, in Barron, Wis., to assist in the search for Jayme Closs, a missing teenage Wisconsin girl, whose parents were killed in the family's home.
Hundreds of volunteers gather, Oct. 23, 2018, in Barron, Wis., to assist in the search for Jayme Closs, a missing teenage Wisconsin girl, whose parents were killed in the family's home. Closs has been missing since Oct. 15, when deputies responding to a 911 call found that someone had broken into the family's home in Barron and gunned down James and Denise Closs.
Jerry Holt /Star Tribune via AP
PHOTO: Volunteers cross a creek and barbed wire near Barron, Wis., Oct. 23, 2018, on their way to a ground search for 13-year-old Jayme Closs who was discovered missing Oct. 15 after her parents were found fatally shot at their home.
Volunteers cross a creek and barbed wire near Barron, Wis., Oct. 23, 2018, on their way to a ground search for 13-year-old Jayme Closs who was discovered missing Oct. 15 after her parents were found fatally shot at their home. The search for Closs was expanded Oct. 23, with as many as 2,000 volunteers expected to take part in a search of the area.
Jeff Baenen/AP Photo

"I'm a dad. I'm a grandpa and this is the right thing to do today," volunteer Mike Buraglio told ABC News as he arrived at the search site.

"I think everybody's very emotional about this," he added. "We all live in the same area, same community, and we all help each other."

PHOTO: Volunteers lined up along Highway 25 just north of Barron, Wis., in the morning of Oct. 23, 2018 to help in the Jayme Closs search.
Volunteers lined up along Highway 25 just north of Barron, Wis., in the morning of Oct. 23, 2018 to help in the Jayme Closs search.
Jerry Holt/Minneapolis Star Tribune/TNS via ZUMA Wire
PHOTO: Volunteers search for evidence in case of missing girl Jayme Closs in Barron, Wisconsin, Oct. 23, 2018.
Volunteers search for evidence in case of missing girl Jayme Closs in Barron, Wisconsin, Oct. 23, 2018.
Alex Perez/ABC News

The 5-mile search area surrounds the home of Jayme's parents, Denise and James Closs, where the couple was found shot dead in the early hours of Oct. 15.

PHOTO: A Barron County, Wis. sheriff's vehicle sits outside, Oct. 23, 2018, the home where James Closs and Denise Closs were found fatally shot on Oct. 15. A search was being organized to find the couple's missing 13-year-old daughter, Jayme.
A Barron County, Wis. sheriff's vehicle sits outside, Oct. 23, 2018, the home where James Closs and Denise Closs were found fatally shot on Oct. 15. A search was being organized to find the couple's missing 13-year-old daughter, Jayme.
Jeff Baenen/AP Photo
PHOTO: Authorities at the home of James and Denise Closs, found dead on Monday in Barron, Wisconsin. Their 13 year-old daughter Jayme Closs was missing.
Authorities at the home of James and Denise Closs, found dead on Monday in Barron, Wisconsin. Their 13 year-old daughter Jayme Closs was missing.
ABC News

Police responded to the house that morning after a strange 911 call. No one spoke on the call but a dispatcher could hear yelling, according to records.

Jayme was believed to be home at the time of the killings but had been abducted by the time police arrived just minutes after the 911 call, according to authorities.

Jayme is considered missing and endangered, the sheriff's department said.

PHOTO: Jayme Closs in an undated photo provided by Barron County, Wis., Sheriff's Department. Closs, a missing teenage girl, could be in danger after two adults were found dead at a home in Barron, Wis., on Oct. 15, 2018.
Jayme Closs in an undated photo provided by Barron County, Wis., Sheriff's Department. Closs, a missing teenage girl, could be in danger after two adults were found dead at a home in Barron, Wis., on Oct. 15, 2018.
Barron County Sheriff's Dept. via AP

"It's important to show people, you know, hope, and that we all care," Josh Murphy, who volunteered to search the grounds Tuesday, told ABC News. "It's been chaos. A lot of people felt it. I can feel the pain of the family even though they're not part of my family. That's how I keep focused on showing hope."

A sign is seen in the small town of Barron, Wis., Oct. 23, 2018, where 13-year-old Jayme Closs was discovered missing Oct. 15 after her parents were found fatally shot at their home. A search was being organized to find the couple's missing daughter.
A sign is seen in the small town of Barron, Wis., Oct. 23, 2018, where 13-year-old Jayme Closs was discovered missing Oct. 15 after her parents were found fatally shot at their home. A search was being organized to find the couple's missing daughter.
Jeff Baenen/AP Photo

"The family needs answers. We need to find her, our winter is coming," added local resident Amy Hugh. "There's no words to describe how important it is."

This call for help comes after an initial search by 100 volunteers on Thursday. It's not clear if any evidence was found in that search.

PHOTO: A group of volunteers search the area along Highway 8, Oct. 18, 2018, in Barron, Wis., near the home where 13-year-old Jayme Closs lived with her parents.
A group of volunteers search the area along Highway 8, Oct. 18, 2018, in Barron, Wis., near the home where 13-year-old Jayme Closs lived with her parents.
Jerry Holt /Star Tribune via AP

Investigators believe Jayme is still alive, Fitzgerald told ABC News on Tuesday, and they won’t stop until they bring her home.

"The hope is what we're riding on," he said.

PHOTO: A moment of silence for Jayme Closs during a gathering at the Barron High School football stadium, Oct. 22, 2018. State, local and federal investigators have been searching for Closs since early Oct. 15.
A moment of silence for Jayme Closs during a gathering at the Barron High School football stadium, Oct. 22, 2018. State, local and federal investigators have been searching for Closs since early Oct. 15, when deputies discovered someone had broken into the family's rural Barron home and shot her parents to death.
Jerry Holt/Star Tribune via AP

On Monday, Fitzgerald said authorities are looking for two vehicles of interest after cars were spotted near the Closs home around the time of the crime.

One car was likely a red or orange 2000 to 2014 Dodge Challenger, based on surveillance videos from homes and businesses.

The second car was likely a 2006 to 2010 black Ford Edge or a 2004 to 2010 black Acura MDX, Fitzgerald said.

Fitzgerald told ABC News Tuesday that investigators are following up on "a number" of tips in response to the vehicle descriptions.

An Amber Alert has been issued for Jayme. Anyone with information is asked to call the 24-hour tip line at 855-744-3879.

Meanwhile, a funeral for the missing girl's parents, Denise and James Closs, will be held Saturday.

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