If someone you care about goes missing, it’s normal to feel a strong desire to physically go out and look for them. But many people don’t have the stamina, don’t feel able or safe to do this, and that’s fine. There are many other ways to help.
Police need as much information as possible to locate a missing person. Be sure to provide them with one or more clear photographs, preferably from the shoulders up, of your loved ones and give them a full physical description including any identifying marks (like tattoos or scars). Provide a timeline of when they were last seen, where they were going and who they were supposed to be with.
There are many reasons why a person may disappear, and often the disappearance is not reported to authorities until it’s too late. They could have committed a crime and gone to hide, they may have suffered a mental health crisis or they might be travelling to a place that isn’t safe for them.
The more time passes since a person has disappeared the less chance they have of being found, witnesses might not remember what happened and evidence can fade. So if someone has been missing for more than 24 hours report them to your local police department. It’s also worth contacting the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children who maintain a national database on missing persons.
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