Ray Martin, left, and his son Jay. (Provided photo — Emily Lauren Martin)

TUPPER LAKE — Several hundred forest rangers, volunteers and members of Adirondack Mountain Rescue are currently combing the woods in Tupper Lake in search of Ray Martin, an experienced hunter who’s been missing since Tuesday morning.

Ray, 65, is a Certified Public Accountant in town. Jay said he set out hunting at 7 a.m. on Tuesday but hasn’t returned yet. He said Ray was last seen wearing all camouflage — his hunting gear.

The state Department of Environmental Conservation has not identified Ray as the subject of its search in Tupper Lake, but wrote in an email that a hunter was reported overdue from a trip by his wife at around 8:30 p.m. on Tuesday.

Martin’s son, Jay Martin, said around 300 people showed up Thursday morning to help with the search, which has been ongoing since Wednesday.

Jay said the search effort does not need more volunteers, but he said organizers are looking for “experienced woodsmen” to put their knowledge to work.

He said too many people can make coordinating a grid search complicated and dangerous.

“The way this terrain is, you can’t just send those people out looking,” Jay said. “They all have to going with rangers.”

Jay said the biggest way people can help now is to provide food for the searchers. He said any food donations should be brought to the Emergency Services Building on Santa Clara Avenue.

On Thursday morning, Jay said they were taking 15 to 20 boats to Bridge Brook Pond — a water body in the wilderness in the Horseshoe Lake Wild Forest accessible across the southwestern end of Tupper Lake — where Ray went hunting on Tuesday.

A large search-and-rescue effort was organized at the boat launch yesterday. Jay said there were around 70 searchers, including around 10 rangers and several Environmental Conservation Police Officers and State Police troopers. Search dogs and helicopters were also brought in. They searched until sundown, according to Robert Beausoleil, Ray’s cousin, who drove up from Pennsylvania to help search.

Beausoleil said in a Facebook post that the search stopped at sundown, but a few professionals kept searching through the night.

“Thank you for all the love and support,” Emily Lauren Martin, who is married to Jay and is Ray’s daughter-in-law, wrote on Facebook. “Please keep sending love, prayers, thoughts, energy, and vibes our way. It means the world. This is an absolute nightmare!”

—

This is a breaking news story. More information will be added as it becomes available.