LAKE COUNTY, Ohio — An eight-hour search for a missing resident of a Lake County assisted living facility concluded with the 76-year-old woman being found inside a random home in Madison Township.
According to the Madison Township Police Department, officers were called to the 2100 block of Hubbard Road on Monday at noon for a report of a "disoriented" woman walking in the roadway. A motorist noted that she was walking southbound in the northbound lane of travel and seemed "unaware of her surroundings." Police started to look for the woman, but were unsuccessful.
An hour later, an officer was approached by an employee of the nearby Lantern of Madison assisted living facility. The employee informed police that 76-year-old patient/resident Phyllis Raines was missing and had last been seen exiting the facility at approximately 11:45 p.m.
A "Reverse 911" was sent out to residents north of U.S. 20 between County Line Road and Hubbard Road, while several Lake County law enforcement units went to work to try to find Raines. Among the agencies involved were:
- Madison Village Police Department
- Madison Township Service Department
- Lake County Regional Drone Team
- Perry Village Police Department K9
- Madison Fire District
- Perry Fire District
- Harpersfield Township Fire Department
- Ohio Branch K9 Search Team
For around five hours, all of the agencies worked to try to find Raines, checking businesses and fields, reviewing home surveillance footage, and following up on community leads.
Then at 7:40 p.m., a homeowner living in the 2100 block of Hubbard Road notified police that a woman had entered his home during the short time that he was in the shower. Officers rushed to the house and discovered the woman was Raines. She was examined by Madison Fire crews and told first responders that she was "exhausted from her travels" and was hiding from the police to avoid being located.
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