Spanaway man last seen picking ferns. All searchers have found is a backpack and footprints

A 72-year-old man who disappeared while picking ferns near Ashford May 25 will be the subject of a search Saturday.

The Pierce County Sheriff’s Search & Rescue Team will look for Chang Soo Kim of Spanaway, who went missing when he was separated from his family in the Beaver Creek area.

Kim has no major health concerns, but he has hearing difficulties and does not speak English, the Sheriff’s Department said.

He was last seen wearing a brown and navy blue jacket, blue shirt, jeans and black shoes. He was carrying a small backpack.

On Friday, the Sheriff’s Department posted on its Facebook page that a “massive” five-day search had been conducted after Kim went missing. That search included an airplane, helicopter, drones, dogs, 4-by-4 units as well as on-foot searchers from a variety of agencies.

Searchers found footprints and Kim’s backpack in a ravine on May 27. The ravine contains a dense forest and rough terrain.

Search efforts were suspended on May 29.

On Saturday, ground searchers and K9 units will resume the search.

This story was originally published June 7, 2019 at 4:59 PM.