CLOVERDALE — A month has passed since a couple traveling through Indiana was involved in a tragic crash on Interstate 70.
Jenna Monet, 23, died in the crash Dec. 29 on I-70 near Cloverdale, and her husband, Derrick, is recovering. Their dog, a blue tick hound mix named Milo ran from the scene and is still missing.
"We got Milo before I joined the Air Force to be sort of a support animal for my wife while I was in basic training and out of contact with her, and so that dog has sort of been her best friend for years," Derrick said.
Gary Cunningham is one of several volunteers putting in hours looking for Milo.
"We are going to leave some socks and a toy," Cunningham, who volunteers with the Owen County Humane Society, said. "If you are familiar with this particular case, it makes a strong man cry."
Milo was in the 2019 Tesla with Jenna and Derrick as they traveled from Arizona to Maryland where Derrick is stationed in the Air Force. Suddenly, though, they crashed into a parked fire truck that was responding to another crash.
Jenna died from her injuries at the hospital, while Derrick is home in Arizona and going through physical therapy. But Milo is still missing.
Derrick said he had suffered fractured vertebrae in his lower back and fractured ribs, along with a broken femur and a lung injury.
"Mostly, I just want to thank everyone who has given a lot of their time effort and money," he said. "It has just been amazing the amount of support that I've gotten from the community there in Indiana, so I just want to thank everybody who has helped out," he said.
Volunteers with Animal Confinement and Education (ACE) have been searching near I-70 and the Putnamville exit where Milo was last seen. The group specializes in the hardest cases.
"He wants his dog. His whole life changed in a matter of seconds. He wants his dog," ACE volunteer Jenn Hopkins said. "I am very hopeful he is out here. We just need to find some signs of him. Find out where he is at."
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There are a few homes in the area where volunteers are passing fliers that include Milo's picture and information.
"We won't stop looking. We will follow every lead," Cunningham said. "A dog can live forever on just running loose."
Volunteers put Milo's toys and Derrick's socks on a porch where cat food bowls were recently missing. They also plan to install trail cameras in the area and will continue searching until they find him and bring him home.
"Every day, I hope to get some kind of good news that they have seen him or have some sort of tail on him because its like a living part of my wife that I could have back," Derrick said. "I'm just hoping for Milo's safe return and just trying to get better every day, but mostly a huge thank you to everyone out there."
