Search underway for missing Lauderdale County woman
LAUDERDALE COUNTY, Tenn. — A search and rescue operation is underway for a missing West Tennessee woman.
Mary Tate (right)
Mary Tate, 54, went missing Friday, Jan. 21. Her twin sister, Maragret Gwaltney was the last to see her.
“She was last at my home. Her boyfriend and them had plans on taking her grandson and his two grandkids to a bowling alley. When she left my house she was on her way to his house,” Gwaltney said.
Tate was last seen wearing a red shirt, black pair of pants, and a black pair of boots.
Gwaltney says her sister suffers from depression and anxiety, and also has bipolar disorder.
“She would go off and rent a room for two or three days, but she always came to work and she always called me. She always texted me and said, ‘Margaret, don’t worry. I just need a break.’ But this is different,” Gwaltney said.
According to the Lauderdale County Sheriff’s Office, Tate was headed towards Ripley when she went through the median and crashed into a dirt mound along Highway 51.
Gwaltney says witnesses passed Tate’s car, but when they turned around to help, she was no where to be found.
“They said her radio was blaring, her headlights were on, but they didn’t notice anybody get out, and they didn’t see her at all around the car,” she said. “Because within two or three minutes, even if you were fleeing from the car, you would be seen somewhere.”
Tate’s maroon, early 2000s Alero was found wrecked between Gates and Halls.
When Lauderadale County Sheriff’s deputies arrived minutes after the crash, Tate’s phone was located in the vehicle, but she was no where to be found.
Now law enforcement is actively searching.
“We have searched ground, Friday night, Saturday, Sunday, and I got THPS helicopter to come over and fly the scene. Pretty much flew the whole north end of the county where she come up missing, but we haven’t found anything. We haven’t found her or anything. Nobody has seen her, nobody has let her use a phone or nothing. It’s just like she vanished,” said Lauderdale County Sheriff Steve Sanders.
Now Gwaltney is looking for answers and hoping her twin sister will be brought home.
“She’s a hard worker. People love her. I don’t know if someone has got her or hurt her. I just want somebody to get her home,” Gwaltney said.
If you have any information, contact the Lauderdale County Sheriff’s Office at (731) 635-1311.
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