(Updated 1:35 p.m.) Police, volunteers and family members continue to search for the Riverside woman who went messing Thursday afternoon.
According to Glenn Taber, son of Jean Taber, 82, initial reports of what his mother was wearing when she disappeared were incorrect as reported by police.
His mother, Taber said, was not wearing a black dress, as originally reported; instead, based on what clothing is missing from her home, she is believed to be wearing a yellow T-shirt, beige pants, a yellow hat, black shoes and probably, a black vest.
Taber, who lives alone, was missing when the aide who cares for her arrived Thursday to find both the woman and her dog, a red and white cocker spaniel, Freckles, were not home. Glenn Taber said he had become concerned when his mother didn’t answer the phone that day. She was last seen walking the dog southbound on County Road 104, according to police.
Taber’s aide called family and told them she was missing.
The wait has been marked by fear, Glenn Taber, who lives in Patchogue, said. “It’s horrible. She’s been missing, to the best of our accounts, since Thursday. And we’ve gone through several cold nights, with rain. We’re hoping to find her very soon.”
On Sunday, Taber said he and family members, including his sister Sue Duffin, who lives in Cutchogue, have joined police “turning over every stone in the trailer park. They’re going from door to door.”
Police, he added, organized a coordinated search in the woods south of County Route 104 on Saturday. “We spread out within a mile and had between 200 and 300 people,” he said.
Helicopters searching the area today saw no sign of his mother, Glenn Taber said police told him. The search is now focused on the area near the Riverwoods mobile home park, he said.
“We’re leaving no stone unturned,” Glenn Taber said.
(8:32 a.m.) The search continues Sunday morning for the missing elderly Riverside woman.
Jean Taber, 82, who lives in the Riverwoods mobile home park on Riverleigh Avenue was last seen walking her cocker spaniel south on County Road 104 Thursday at about 4 p.m.
Taber suffers from dementia and may need medical attention, according to state police, who are leading the investigation for the missing woman. State police issued a media alert yesterday morning. See prior story.
More than 200 people searched the area south of the Riverwoods Park all day yesterday, police said, including volunteers from 13 local fire departments who helped police conduct a massive line search for three hours yesterday afternoon. Volunteers scoured the state preserved woodlands on the west side of CR 104 and checked abandoned structures along the east side of the road, according to a source involved in the investigation.
Police deployed K9 units in the search and briefly had a Suffolk County police helicopter assist. Strong winds prevented the helicopter from searching throughout the day, police said.
Police yesterday canvassed businesses in downtown Riverhead. Police, family members and volunteers handed out flyers with pictures and a description of the petite redhead. Taber is described as 5 feet tall, 110 pounds, with red hair and hazel eyes. When last seen, she was wearing a black dress and a black vest. She had no identification with her but was wearing a penicillin allergy bracelet, her daughter, Sue Duffin said.
But so far there have been no new leads or reports of sightings, according to police.
State police have called in N.Y. state forest rangers to assist with the search today, the source said. A state police helicopter is also scheduled to join the effort, and more K9 units have been called in from upstate, he said.
Riverhead and Flanders volunteer firefighters and L.I. Search and Rescue are also participating in the search this morning, he said.
“Today we’ll be doing much more concentrated searches of specific areas, extending to the north and east of the trailer park as well,” he said.
Exposure became a significant health concern, as temperatures in the region plummeted into the low 20s overnight, according to the National Weather Service. Much more moderate temperatures prevailed overnight Thursday and Friday, with lows in the low 40s.
Anyone who has seen the missing woman or believes they may have information regarding her whereabouts is asked to call the state police Riverside barracks at 631-208-9002.
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