Search continues for Longmont native missing in Georgia

UNION COUNTY, Ga. – Searchers returned to the North Georgia mountains at daybreak Thursday in hopes of finding a woman, originally from Colorado, missing since New Year's Day.

A helicopter also assisted in the search, scouring a North Georgia mountain for any sings of Meredith Emerson.

Friends of the 24-year-old say she went hiking with her dog on Blood Mountain Tuesday. Blood Mountain is the highest peak on the Georgia section of the Appalachian Trail.

Friends believe Emerson, who is originally from Longmont, spent the night outside. Temperatures dropped into the teens Tuesday.

After Emerson failed to show up for work on Wednesday, volunteers searched for her along six miles of the Appalachian Trail. The search was called off around 4 p.m. Mountain Time.

At daybreak Thursday, a Georgia State Patrol helicopter using an infrared device started an air search for Emerson. Volunteer searchers gathered by the dozens to help but have been asked to stay clear of the mountain so that any body heat is not mistaken for Emerson.

During a Thursday morning news conference in Union County, investigator Kimberly Burdough said five or six people have come forward with information about Emerson. One of them, a former police officer, told a disturbing story. After seeing Emerson and her dog, he later spotted a suspicious man in the area who was carrying a police baton. The ex-cop has returned to the scene to help investigators pinpoint the area where he saw Emerson, as well as the suspicious man.

Burdough said more help in the search is on the way. "The Gwinnett County Sheriff's Office and Gwinnett County's Police Department are assisting us in this. They are sending their search and rescue team up here to assist us."

"We are doing every effort to find Meredith." Burdough said that members of the Appalachian Trail club have been contacted for any information about caves or other areas where Emerson could have survived the night.

On Wednesday, friends and relatives traveled to Blood Mountain where they found Emerson's snow-covered car about noon in a trail parking lot. Authorities have confirmed that a water bottle and leash found on the mountain and turned into a local shop owner belong to Emerson.

Family spokesperson Peggy Bailey said Emerson's parents flew in from Colorado Wednesday night.

"Her parents, as you can imagine, are devastated and frightened but they are strong people, as is Meredith," said Bailey. "She is smart, level-headed."

Emerson, a University of Georgia graduate, just started a new job and was excited about taking on a leadership role there, Bailey said. She was also skilled at hiking.

"Meredith Emerson could do anything. She is feisty. She is strong. She is tiny and petite, 120 pounds, [but] she can run those mountains. She's a strong person. If anyone can survive this she can."

Emerson's black Labrador Retriever is also missing.

"That dog loves her and won't leave her side for anything. She's just a great dog. She's about a year old and they go everywhere together," said Emerson's roommate, Julia Karrenbaur.