Update: Dogs, riders, task force combing area for missing Stone County man

HANCOCK COUNTY -- More than 100 volunteers, including family and friends, have been searching the woods around Muddy Joe's Off Road and RV Park for Brody "B.J." Brown, but there has been no sighting of him since Saturday evening.

The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency also sent in a special task force that searched the entire 400 acres at Muddy Joe's, said state Sen. Sean Tindell, who is Brown's cousin.

Tindell said the park is su1rrounded by thousands more acres of wooded property. Brown's disappearance is wearing on his wife, Jenni, two sons and parents, Tindell said.

"The children have been made aware now," he said. "It's hard for them."

Law enforcement agencies, led by the Hancock County Sheriff's Office, also has been using dogs, equipment and horseback riders to look for the offshore worker from Stone County.

"Not too much has changed," Hancock County Chief Deputy Don Bass said Tuesday evening. He said a search-and-rescue team from Slidell brought over specialized sonar equipment that was used to search Tranquility Lake on the grounds of Muddy Joe's. Divers also were in the lake.

"We feel confident that we've covered every inch of this lake," Bass said. Even so, he said, officers will resume their search Wednesday morning. He said dogs did alert on the lake, but that doesn't mean Brown is there. Thousands of people were at the concert Brown and his wife attended Saturday evening at Muddy Joe's. Brown excused himself to go to the rest room about 9:30 p.m. Saturday and never returned.

The family has offered a $10,000 reward for information that leads to Brown or the arrest of any person involved in his disappearance.

Bass said the search will resume and continue as long as the weather is clear, but it might have to be suspended when rain moves in Wednesday. It is expected to rain for several days.

This story was originally published March 8, 2016 at 7:30 PM with the headline "Update: Dogs, riders, task force combing area for missing Stone County man ."