The search continues for a 7-year-old girl whose last known location is her father’s Paradise, Texas home around 6 p.m Wednesday.
Athena Strand’s stepmother told Wise County Sheriff’s deputies the girl disappeared following an argument the two of them had while Strand’s father was not home. She said she looked for Strand for an hour before reporting her missing.
Neighbors tell CBS News they’re skeptical about the idea Strand wandered off on her own.
“She’s not OK with being in the dark,” neighbor Melina Owens said. “She doesn’t like the cold.”
Owens said she only knew the missing girl to go next door to her grandmother’s home when unattended.
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Dropping temperatures are raising concerns in the north Texas area. Volunteers have coordinated online to look for the girl. CBS News reports she was last seen wearing brown boots with a gray long sleeve shirt and jeans adorned in white flowers.
The Weather Channel forecasts a low of 41 degrees Friday night in Paradise, which is roughly 60 miles north west of Dallas.
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The Wise County Office of Emergency Management is posting updates on their search, including a Friday morning message asking volunteers not to share information that didn’t come from an official source. Officials also asked concerned locals not to physically interfere in rescue workers’ search efforts.
“Arriving on scene at a large scale incident without being requested to a) offer to help or b) bring unrequested supplies, takes time and resources away from the task at hand,” officials posted on Facebook. “Please stay clear of the area unless there is an official request.”
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Professionals involved in the search include Texas Rangers, local police and fire departments and a K-9 team.
Strand’s mother, Maitlyn Gandy, wrote on Facebook Thursday night she was thankful for the support she was getting from her family and the Wise County community and vowed to continue her search.
“Athena didn’t walk away or disappear on her own,” she wrote.
An Amber alert was issued Thursday for the missing child. Texas authorities said in a Friday afternoon press conference that Strand’s parents have been cooperative. While there’s no evidence of foul play, investigators “understand that could be a possibility.”
They added that there were no video-capable Ring doorbells in the area that would have recorded the fourth grader’s disappearance. Locals were encouraged to search barns, vehicles and anywhere else on their property where Strand could be.
