Sadly not all searches and rescues have a happy ending. Sadly, authorities have discovered the body of a missing grandmother after she fell into a sinkhole while searching for her missing cat. The Pennsylvania grandmother ended up tumbling into the abyss while looking for her pet earlier this week.
Search and rescue crews have been searching for Elizabeth Pollard ever since she went missing. She disappeared on Monday while out searching for the feline. When the grandmother didn't come home, her family became worried and reported her missing. Search and rescue crews discovered the body of Pllard inside of the sinkhole on Friday morning.
Right now, they're still in the process of trying to recover her remains. Pennsylvania State Police spokesperson Trooper Steve Limani confirmed that recovery efforts for the woman are on going. He also confirmed that authorities notified the grandmother's family that she sadly have passed. Limani seemed confident they would be able to recover the remains.
Grandmother Dies In Sinkhole
"It's a matter of removing the dirt," Limani said in a news conference.
Authorities believe that Pollard got too close to the sinkhole and fell in on Monday morning. She had went out searching for the cat alongside her 5-year-old granddaughter. They found the young girl inside Pollard's vehicle near the sinkhole. The vehicle was parked only a few feet away from the sinkhole
It's believed that the grandmother left her inside the vehicle while she took a closer look. From the beginning, search and rescue efforts have focused on the sinkhole. Initially, they hoped to find her alive but found no signs of life. On Wednesday, they announced that they no longer thought she was alive.
Sadly, their expectations turned out to be correct. "The family kept telling us, 'we really want to have the body back so we can lay her to rest,'" Limani told reporters Friday. "As a group, we just wanted to make sure that we were able to do that."
Pollard was married for more than 40 years. She was an active part of her community, working at the local Walmart. Pollard grew up in the nearby town of Jeanette.
