Updated 08/22/2010 06:47 PM
Police ask for your help finding a missing elderly woman
Rescue teams have been searching since Saturday evening for an elderly woman from the Oneonta area. Clara Layman was reporting missing around 6:30 p.m. Saturday. Over 100 volunteers searched in the rain on Sunday. Our Carmen Perez spoke with State Police about the operation.
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OTSEGO COUNTY, N.Y. -- Seventy three-year-old Clara Layman went for her usual afternoon walk around a pond on her property Saturday afternoon, but never returned home.
"She went missing at around 4:30 p.m. The search stared at 6 p.m. when we were notified. We searched over night and are still searching" said Sgt. Gary Lahey of New York State Police.
The search was slowed but not stopped by the pouring rain Sunday afternoon. More than 100 people including New York State Rangers, State Police and volunteer search and rescue crews are searching a ten square mile radius around Layman's home, including the pond.
"They looked at it pretty good yesterday but they didn't go in yesterday it is not a very deep pond but today they will go in, the divers," said Lahey.
Layman lives with her husband and has stage three Alzheimer’s which is an early stage, but can still be very problematic.
"She can become disoriented and not know where she is and it's possible that is what happened," said Lahey.
Layman's son said she was on medication for the disease but can no longer recognize numbers on a key pad and would not be able to dial for help. Officials are doing a door to door search near her home and say they are trained to deal with missing person cases like Layman's.
"It is not uncommon, usually not to this scale, we usually find them quicker but it is not uncommon," said Lahey.
Although she is not very agile, officials are hopeful that because she is physically active her chances of survival are stronger.
Layman was last seen wearing a red shirt, sweatpants, white sneakers and possibly a black and white wind-breaker.
If you have any information you are being urged to call the New York State Ranger command post at (518) 653-8203 or the New York State Police at (607) 432-3211.