Terrance Batchelder Missing Person Case

Mar 17, 2020

Feb 20, 2024

Terrance

Batchelder

78

43

70 inches

170 lbs

White / Caucasian

Male

In the vast and often unforgiving expanse of the Alaskan Aleutian Islands, the story of Terrance "Sam" Batchelder, a 43-year-old male, unfolds as a haunting maritime mystery. On November 28, 1990, Batchelder and his fellow crewmate, 32-year-old John Slagill, were aboard the tugboat Red Jacket. Faced with a need for fresh water, the two men prepared for a seemingly routine task. They boarded a 12-foot inflatable Zodiac boat, equipped with survival gear that included warm clothing, a flare gun, a rifle, and life vests, and headed towards the shores of the volcanic and uninhabited Seguam Island. From the deck of the Red Jacket, anchored a quarter-mile away, the remaining crew watched as Batchelder and Slagill successfully landed their small craft in a sheltered area known as Finch Cove. The men were seen dragging the Zodiac onto the beach and, against the chill of the November air, they built a fire, its light a small beacon of human presence in the wild landscape. As daylight faded, the crew of the Red Jacket kept a watchful eye on the shore party. It was noted that the men seemed to be taking a considerable amount of time in their search for a freshwater stream. The vessel's skipper, Brad Somers, even used the public address system to call out to them. Later that night, a snowstorm descended upon the island, shrouding the beach in a veil of white and obscuring the view from the anchored tug. By the morning of November 29, the snow had ceased, but a deeply unsettling scene was revealed. The beach was empty. Terrance Batchelder, John Slagill, and their Zodiac had vanished. The concerned crew of the Red Jacket immediately took action, navigating their vessel closer to the cove and going ashore. There, in the freshly fallen snow, they found only footprints, a lone glove, and a plastic bag. Drag marks leading to the water's edge suggested that the Zodiac had been launched sometime during the night, in the midst of the storm. An immediate and desperate attempt to make contact was made from the Red Jacket; the ship's horn blared, a siren wailed, and three rounds were fired from a revolver, but the vast wilderness of Seguam Island remained silent. The United States Coast Guard was alerted, launching a comprehensive search and rescue operation. For three days, Coast Guard C-130s and a Navy P-3 aircraft scoured a staggering 6,200 square miles of the unforgiving sea and rugged coastline. Despite the extensive efforts, no trace of the two men, their inflatable boat, or any of their equipment was ever found. The official search was suspended on December 1, 1990, leaving behind a painful void and an enduring mystery. The disappearance of Terrance Batchelder and John Slagill from a remote Aleutian island serves as a somber reminder of the unpredictable and powerful nature of the sea, a story of a simple task that ended in a perplexing and unsolved vanishing.

Nov 28, 1990

Dillingham

Alaska

Dillingham Census Area

No

77482

Alaska State Troopers

Anchorage

Alaska

Anchorage Borough

99507

Malia Miller

Missing Persons Clearinghouse Manager

5700 East Tudor Road, Alaska

9072695511

State

Law Enforcement

900079776

Alaska State Troopers

Brown

Brown

Brown

07/20/2026