Family members step up efforts to find Mich. man

BIG RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) -- Family members of a Michigan man whose car was found in a remote area of Mark Twain National Forest in southern Missouri have stepped up efforts to find him.

Fred Byrne's brother-in-law compiled a list of more than 70 counties between Holland, Mich., and Carter County, Mo., where his car was found, and family members plan to call law enforcement agencies and others, The Holland Sentinel reported (http://bit.ly/13fd7h3 ).

Marie Hamilton, Byrne's mother-in-law, said the family wants to make sure officials in the wide area know about the case and how "they can help us search for him." Each volunteer will follow a script to cover main points, offering fliers with photos of Byrne.

Byrne, 49, of Big Rapids, has been missing since Feb. 12, when he dropped off his son at Hope College in Holland and visited his mother.

Byrne's Chevy Malibu was found parked Feb. 14 along a forest service road near Van Buren, Mo., which is about 160 miles southwest of St. Louis and roughly 560 miles from where he was last seen. Big Rapids police said Byrne's wallet and keys were in the car.

The car might have passed through Indiana and Illinois to get to Missouri. An aerial search of Mark Twain National Forest in February didn't find Byrne.

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Information from: The Holland Sentinel, http://www.thehollandsentinel.com