Massive hunt can?t locate 86-year-old

Members of the Warren County Rescue Squad have joined a massive manhunt for an 86-year-old Cannon County resident who was still missing at 7:30 p.m. last night.

The car of Viella Estes, an Alzheimer?s patient, was discovered empty at 5:20 p.m. Tuesday. Since that time, authorities from Cannon and surrounding counties have been trying desperately to locate her. The vehicle was found on Sally Parton Road in the Short Mountain area.

?It?s like she vanished into thin air,? said Warren County Rescue Squad director Fred Hillis, who sent 10 to 12 members of his crew to help in the search. ?They?ve been using dogs and helicopters and anything they can to try to find her, but nothing has worked. The dogs will get a scent and then they?ll just stop.?

Hillis described the area as ?pretty rough countryside.?

Despite Estes? age and medical condition, she reportedly lived alone at home.

The Cannon County Sheriff?s Department reports that around 160 people helped with the search Wednesday and about 125 helped yesterday.

The search was expected to continue until about 11 p.m. last night. If Estes wasn?t found by that time, the search is expected to resume around 7 a.m. this morning.