Jonathan Eric Eiland -- Missing From Little Rock Since 2013

Details from NamUs**: 

"MP Jonathan Eiland was last seen on 05/31/2013 by friends whom he stayed with for a while. According to friends, MP Eiland was homeless with another friend and they both slept under the bridge on 28th Street in Little Rock by the University of Little Rock."

 

Missing Person: Jonathan Eric Eiland
Could be referred to as: J.J.
Last-contact date: May 31st, 2013
The area where the MP was last seen: Sherwood, Arkansas
Link to government source: NamUs MP#6849 

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VITAL DETAILS

Ethnicity: Black
Sex: Male
Age at time of disappearance: 45 years old
Birthdate: This person was born between June 1st, 1967, and May 31st, 1968

• When the birthdate isn't known, I calculate a range using the age at the date of the missing person's disappearance.

Hair: Black
Eyes: Brown
Scar: None listed at NamUs
Height/weight: 5-foot-6 and 145 pounds
BMI*: Jonathan Eric Eiland was in the normal range for BMI.

• BMI stands for body mass index. It is not foolproof but it can help understand what a person's figure looked like.

Tattoos: Jonathan Eric Eiland did not have any tattoos associated with his profiles. If you know that the missing person did have tattoos, then please post a remark at the end of this blog post on the matter.

Jonathan Eric Eiland was last heard from on May 31st, 2013 when he was 45 years of age. This individual has now been missing for 8 years as of the original publication date of this blog post.

What stands out with this case is that this individual was homeless at the time of his disappearance. Of course, it would be surprising if there was much media coverage affiliated with his disappearance due to this. Nothing really came up when I searched his name on newspapers.com conjoined with "missing."

Also, at the time of his disappearance, he was thought to be sleeping under a bridge. That will invoke questions of personal safety and health. 

The NamUs description says that the bridge he used for shelter was near the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. It also says that it was on 28th street, however, that may be "W. 28th Street." There is a waterway called Coleman Creek in this area and a small bridge at that point. I wondered if the missing person was using that exact bridge for shelter as I did not find any other ones in the area.

The description at CharleyProject indicates that Eiland's friend was found deceased after drowning. I found a news-media source online that reported on this event. There were reports of flash floods, tornado warnings, and missing people associated with Little Rock in early June of 2013.

Given that Eiland's friend may have been swept away in a flood, as one possible explanation for his drowning, it could be that Eiland suffered the same fate but as of yet simply has not been found. When people disappear in water, they can stay disappeared for very long times.

I found the following video on Twitter with user Laura Ruhl (@ScienceRuhls). The video shows Coleman Creek at the same bridge that I think Eiland used for shelter (I did a multi-point inspection, the pedestrian walkway is the same as are the street signs). Importantly, the flood that is depicted is not from the time frame when Eiland disappeared. However, I include the video because I think the raging water is indicative of what likely happened in 2013. You can clearly see how someone who was sleeping under the bridge would have been in grave danger of being washed away. Flash floods are floods that come without much warning

Flash flooding on campus @UALR #geologyrocks pic.twitter.com/E7hUYeP2hx

— Laura Ruhl (@ScienceRuhls) May 23, 2018

Below is a report out of Little Rock that shows there were flash floods in the state at about the time that Eiland was last heard from. Certainly, we can see how someone who sleeps under a bridge is at increased risk of dying in such weather-related events.

01 Jun 2013, Sat Baxter Bulletin (Mountain Home, Arkansas) Newspapers.com

The microregion looks slightly forested and there are some thick bushes when I look on Google Maps. Due to Eiland's homelessness, it's likely that there wasn't exactly a large search party for him. However, if he did wash away in a strong current, he may have traveled away from this bridge at least a little ways. The flow of the water is south toward Fourche Creek, which only looks about a mile away. John Does found in this area should be cross-referenced against Eiland's case details.

I did a search on NamUs among the unidentified decedents and did not find that there were many in Arkansas for the time frame in question. However, the database gets updated all the time so readers can do their own searches.

Regardless of whether Eiland is found, one point that should be taken away from this case is that homeless people that sleep near rivers or creeks are in increased danger during flooding. It might be a clue in other similar missing person cases, where a missing person is known to seek similar shelter as the kind Eiland sought. In such cases, look for reports of flooding in the region.

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Author: Shane Lambert, (Freelance Writer)

All articles are subject to editing after the original posting.

Shane Lambert, (Freelance Writer) is not a Private Investigator, however, he is currently studying to be one as of March 2021.

Website hashtag: #MPCSL

*For BMI values, I use the UPPER or HIGHER ranges that are given for height and weight.
**Text might be paraphrased. If taken verbatim, then grammar or spelling errors are not necessarily corrected from original sources.
Disclaimer: Non-opinionated information at this site generally comes from government sources like NamUs, Canada's Missing, or police reports. Other sources may be used at the writer's discretion.