On Tuesday, November 15, 2016, the Douglas County 9-1-1 center received a call from a family member of Ralph Masuzumi, age 74 of Azalea, Oregon, reporting him as a missing person. Mr. Masuzumi failed to return home after visiting a friend who was camping on BLM land near Azalea, Oregon on Monday, November 14, 2016. Mr. Masuzumi was last seen between 5:00 pm and 5:30 pm on November 14th, traveling on Burma Road toward Starveout Creek Road in Azalea. Search and Rescue units have been searching the area since around noon Tuesday. Mr. Masuzumi should be driving a burgundy colored, 2002 Dodge Dakota pickup with Oregon license plate YWV539. He is described as 5’9″ 170 pounds with gray hair and brown eyes. He was last seen wearing a dark colored stalking cap, a wool lined plaid jacket, a white turtle neck, blue jeans, and work style boots. Anyone who has information regarding Mr. Masuzumi’s whereabouts is asked to call the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office at 541-440-4471. Update: 11/16 – On Wednesday, November 16, 2016, Douglas County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue personnel located the crashed vehicle and the deceased body of Ralph Masuzumi approximately 4.5 miles up Burma Road in Azalea. This road is also known as BLM road 32-4-20.1. The initial indications at the scene are that Mr. Masuzumi’s vehicle left the road and went over an embankment before crashing. Sheriff’s Office personnel is still on scene conducting an investigation into the crash.
