Thomas ran into another Marine veteran, Staff Sgt. David Karnes. Thomas presented a plan for a search-and-rescue mission of the area, and he and Karnes tried to enlist other marines and soldiers on site to help. When they were told the mission was too dangerous, they decided to go by themselves. "I found a couple guys, but it wasn't enough, to them, to start a search and rescue," he said. "I remember myself and Karnes saying, 'We're going to start the search and rescue with or without you, because someone needs us.'"