The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus Guitarist Helps Save Missing Man’s Life
The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus guitarist Randy Winter used his hearing to help save a missing man's life in the rock band's hometown of Middleburg, Fla., last week.
According to a report from nearby Jacksonville's News 4 Jax, Middleburg resident David Willard was revealed as missing by the Clay County Sheriff's Office on April 26. Being familiar with the area that searchers were focused on, Winter offered to lend a hand — or an ear — in the search that had investigators combing the woods near his home with ATVs and a helicopter.
Watch a video down toward the bottom of this post.
"From my years as a musician both in the studio and on tour, I've learned to be able to separate distinct sounds," Winter tells Channel 4. "I know this area very well and thought I could help."
So the Red Jumpsuit Apparatus member sprung into action, giving the team more "boots on the ground." But he couldn't employ his most practical tool until after the motor noise from the ATVs died down. Once they did, the musician zeroed in on a sound not naturally occurring — it was Willard trying to call for help.
"I hear something," Winter recalls of the scene, "but they aren't responding to my calls to them, so I stayed still for a bit. It was uncomfortable standing there waiting because my wife was also searching and had gone deeper into the woods."
Alerting the other search party members, the musician explains, "They looked at me with little doubt and apprehension because time is so valuable in a search, and I pointed out I definitely heard it. They stopped their ATVs, and the sound didn't happen again right away."
After a few minutes, the sound did occur again, and Winter guided rescuers to its point of origin. The man was found shortly afterward, and Winter is glad he could help and is happy Willard's back home safe.
Last year, The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus released The Emergency EP, the six-song collection that follows their 2018 album, The Awakening. In August 2020, Winter's brother and the group's lead singer, Ronnie Winter, spoke with Loudwire about The Emergency.