A Silverton man who went missing last week was found dead Tuesday after his car was discovered 600 feet off Red Mountain Pass on U.S. Highway 550 between Silverton and Ouray.
Lisa Schwantes, spokeswoman for the Colorado Department of Transportation, said Highway 550 between Silverton and Ouray closed at 11 a.m. Wednesday so crews could retrieve the vehicle. The work was completed just after 4 p.m., and the highway reopened about 5 p.m.
According to Ouray County Coroner Colleen Hollenbeck, 83-year-old Howard Drake failed to make it home from Montrose to Silverton on Dec. 12. He was last seen around 4:30 p.m. that day, driving his red Chevy Equinox LT.
For the past week, authorities had been searching the region for Drake, Hollenbeck said.
On Tuesday, search crews took a drone on Red Mountain Pass, near the Ruby Wall stretch of the highway, and were able to fly the drone down the steep canyon and find Drake’s red car.
Drake was located around 2 p.m. Tuesday, Hollenbeck said. The highway was temporarily closed as his body was retrieved, which was complete around 5:30 p.m.
Hollenbeck said the crash remains under investigation, but last Wednesday, the day Drake drove over Red Mountain Pass, it was snowing heavily.
Drake’s car was a two-wheel drive vehicle, and it is possible the slick road contributed to it going off the road.
Red Mountain Pass reopens after crash recovery
The section of highway where Drake’s car dropped off is a steep and narrow stretch of mountainous road.
Calls to Colorado State Patrol, the agency leading the investigation, were not returned.
Schwantes said Drake went off the road near mile marker 90.3, just south of the Bear Creek waterfall lookout.
“It’s just very disheartening to hear this news,” she said.
jromeo@durangoherald.com
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