With Weak Cell and Radio Signals, Search Teams Get Help From TACN's Portable Unit

What do law enforcement agencies do when they're searching for a missing man in an area with limited radio or cell service? They call the Tennessee Advanced Communications Network (TACN) to bring their compact rapid deployable (CRD) to establish those critical communications needs.

Early on Saturday, Aug. 29, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) issued a Silver Alert for 81-year-old Homer Billings, who was last seen traveling north near Dyersburg. A license plate reader confirmed his movements, and his cellphone later pinged near Caruthersville, Mo.

Still, that information wasn't enough to find him.

New clues started to surface on Sunday, Aug. 30. Home surveillance video showed Billings still in Lake County, Tenn.

On Monday, Aug. 31, Lake County resident Mark Roberson checked his trail camera and spotted an image that looked like Billings. Roberson reported it to law enforcement right away.

Search teams went to where the trail camera was set up --- once they arrived, they spotted Billings' SUV close by. Then crews set up a command post. But the search area came with a major challenge - limited cell and radio service.

Before sending teams into the woods, officials realized the communication blackout would slow the search and make coordination difficult. That's when they contacted TACN for help.

Two TACN technicians, Jessie Overmann and Adam Forsythe, responded quickly from the Jackson, Tenn. office.

They arrived with the TACN CRD, a portable, self-contained unit designed to create radio coverage where none or little exists. Around 6:10 p.m., they set up the CRD, and within minutes, the entire search zone had reliable TACN radio communication.

For the first time, every responder from every agency could talk to one another without interruption.

That connection made a major difference.

At 7:48 p.m., search teams found Billings lying in dense brush not far from the trail camera location. He was dehydrated, tired, and confused - but responsive. Because of the CRD, that information went out instantly across the operation.

All responders received the update at the same time, helping teams change direction, stop unnecessary searches, and make sure everyone was safe.

Tennessee Highway Patrol troopers carried Billings out of the woods to an awaiting utility terrain vehicle. He was reunited with his family and then taken to a local hospital for evaluation.

Without TACN's rapid deployment capability, responders would have had to rely on weak line-of-sight radio or walk long distances back to the command post to share information - delays that could have pushed the search late into the night and put more strain on already tired teams.

More importantly, any additional delay could have been dangerous for Billings, who had already been alone in the woods for almost three days and was showing clear signs of dehydration and confusion.

Instead, TACN delivered exactly what it was built for: fast, dependable, mission-critical communication in places where normal coverage disappears. In this search, that capability kept responders connected and driving forward through a complex, time-sensitive operation when every minute counted.

For the Tennessee Department of Safety & Homeland Security, the incident highlights a simple truth: in life-or-death situations, reliable communication isn't optional - it's essential.