A 25-year-old woman in Alabama was last heard from Thursday night after telling a 911 dispatcher she saw a toddler walking on the side of an interstate and was going to pull over to help, prompting a wide-ranging search for her as investigators raced to. find clues to her disappearance.
The woman, Carlee Russell, told the dispatcher about the child around 9:34 p.m., called a family member to report the same details and then pulled over on I-459 South near mile marker 11 to check on the toddler, the Hoover Police Department . said
The family member “lost contact” with Mrs. Russell, but the line remained open, the police said.
When officers arrived at the scene in Hoover, a suburb of Birmingham, they found Ms Russell’s vehicle and some of her belongings nearby, “but could not find her or the child in the area,” the police said in a statement.
The Hoover Police Department said it has not received any calls from anyone missing a child.
Ms. Russell left work about 8:20 p.m. at a business in a business area called Summit in Birmingham, officials said.
After work, she also stopped to get food, police said.
One witness reported seeing a gray vehicle with a man standing outside Mrs. Russell’s vehicle, but it was unclear where or when this happened. The Hoover police did not immediately respond to calls seeking comment Saturday night.
Ms. Russell, who is 5 feet 4 inches tall and weighs at least 150 pounds, was last seen wearing a black shirt, black pants and white Nike shoes.
The Harpersville Police Department said Friday on Facebook that Mrs. Russell, a nursing student, was in town, about 30 miles east of Hoover, on Thursday “taking care of some business.”
The department did not say exactly what Ms. Russell did in Harpersville, but it added that she was a “smart, polite and honorable young woman” who impressed others with her “respect, composure, good attitude and her desire to become a young woman.” nursing student and help others.”
It explained in a separate post on Saturday that she was not at the police station.
“We constantly encounter citizens while participating in the community and those instances are mainly positive,” said the department. “We had the pleasure of interacting with a bright young woman, which prompted the sharing of the encounter. Our interests are solely for Ms Russell’s safe return to her family.”