CHICAGO— Authorities say the body of an elderly woman with dementia who had been missing for more than a week has been found 11 days after she was last seen.
Yolanda Howell, 78, was last seen Oct. 8 in the 10088 block of Cedar Avenue in Country Club Hills.
Cook County Forest Preserve police said around 9:15 a.m. Saturday that a search and rescue drone found a person lying in a ravine on the Forest Preserve’s Bartel Grassland property. The body was that of a black woman who showed no signs of life, police said. There were no initial indications that the person was the victim of a violent act.
An intensive emergency search involving multiple agencies, including the Lake County Sheriff’s Office and even the Chicago Police Department, lasted for hours Wednesday as volunteers searched for Howell in the air and on the ground. Police were led by K-9 units who followed her scent to a parking lot near a hiking trail. A short time later the smell turned cold.
Earlier this week, family members expressed disappointment, saying police had not publicized Howell’s disappearance.
Lisette Guillen
Her family said she suffers from dementia, which has gotten worse over the years. Relatives said she had a habit of leaving the home she shared with her husband while he was sleeping and would wander around the neighborhood. Sometimes she would walk into neighbors’ houses and sleep in an empty bed.
“It’s a needle in a haystack. We just have to keep looking. Hopefully, you know, with the elements that we’ve been through this past week, it’s very, very difficult, but time is of the essence, and hopefully we can get her before it’s too late,” said Team Canine member Lorenzo Longoria earlier this week.
She was last seen wearing a black Guess hooded sweatshirt and blue sneakers.
The video above is from an earlier report.
