Virginia police are searching for a missing mother and teenage daughter who went missing Sunday on their way to West Virginia.
According to NBC 12, the Prince George County Police Department is searching for Martha Bates and her daughter Mary Bates after the pair went missing over the weekend.
Authorities say Martha and Mary Bates were traveling to Camp Carlo in Huttonsville, West Virginia in a silver 2015 Nissan Rogue at roughly 4 p.m. in Monterey on Sunday. The Virginia license plate is “UVL9169.”
Authorities say the disappearance of Martha and Mary Bates is “out of character.” Authorities have also noted that the disappearance does not appear to be the result of any custody dispute.
“I agree, you know it’s a long time, and it’s definitely not in their character to just drop off of the grid like this,” Martha Bates’ uncle, Tom Dreon, said.
According to ABC 8 News, Martha Bates is a 42-year-old white woman, weighs about 345 pounds, is 5-foot-3-inches tall, and has brown hair, brown eyes, and glasses. Her daughter, Mary, is a 15-year-old white girl, weighs about 110 pounds, is 5-foot tall, and has brown eyes and brown hair.
Dreaon told NBC 12 that the family has been “trying to keep upbeat” as they search for the missing mother and daughter, despite facing a “difficult situation.”
Camp Carlo is located about four hours from Prince George. Martha Bates was reportedly supposed to contact her husband after arriving at the camp. When Martha’s husband never received a phone call, he contacted the camp and discovered that neither Martha nor Mary ever arrived at their destination.
“She wanted Mary Elizabeth to go off to a summer camp,” Dreon said. “So they were looking forward to it.”
According to Dreon, Martha had a phone with her when she disappeared, but Mary did not.
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“Right now, the phone goes straight to voicemail,” he said. “There’s no ring at all, so that means the phone is out of the network area or it’s turned off right.”
Martha’s husband and search crews are currently searching for Martha and Mary Bates along the roads between Prince George and Camp Carlo, especially where the Nissan Rogue was last spotted.
Dreon told NBC 12 that he is hopeful that Martha and Mary lost their way after running into bad weather, adding that he is praying both of them are able to be found and return to Martha’s husband and son.
“It seems like they’re doing a lot of road searching right now of the major highways,” he said. “I guess in a day or two if we don’t find them yet, then it would go a little bit more off-road.”
Dreon said that with “everyone’s help” in the search for Martha and Mary, the family is hoping to “get this resolved in a happy way soon.”
