Emma Lee Carroll, 83, vanished from her home on Carroll Crossing Road in Pembroke, Georgia after being seen by her daughter around 6:00 p.m. before a trip to a local store. Two hours later the daughter returned to find the front door open and Emma gone. Emma lived with dementia and hypertension and had wandered away twice before; those earlier episodes ended with her being found quickly.

A large, multiagency search followed immediately, spanning helicopters, ATVs and ground crews and initially concentrating on a two-square-mile radius before expanding to five miles. Searchers reported no footprints or physical clues leading to her whereabouts. At the time she disappeared she was wearing a navy blue dress with small white flowers and a large white collar and flat shoes. Foul play is not suspected; investigators and family believe she likely wandered off because of her dementia.

Years have passed with no confirmed sightings and no leads developed; the Pembroke Sheriff’s Department’s investigation remains unresolved. If anyone in southeast Georgia remembers seeing an elderly woman matching Emma’s description or has information that could help her family, please come forward.