Search and rescue crews in Armstrong County continued their efforts Sunday to find Cory Dominic Cook, a 31-year-old Avonmore man last seen Thursday and said to be suffering from paranoid delusions and hallucinations.
The search, suspended on Sunday at sunset, will continue Monday morning.
Authorities began the search on Saturday, suspending it at 8 p.m. They continued at 10 a.m. Sunday, according to Manor Township police. Crews focused their efforts along the Allegheny River between Water Street and Kittanning’s sewage treatment plant.
Authorities continued to scour that area Sunday, said Justin Kukuruda, chief of Pennsylvania Wilderness Search and Rescue’s western division. Some areas were hard to reach Saturday night because of the steep hills and icy conditions, he added.
The group deployed boats Sunday to assist with the effort, which concluded at 5:30 p.m. for the safety of first responders, police said.
Search efforts are set to resume at 10 a.m. Monday. Residents are again being asked to stay clear of the area.
“Increased foot traffic, recreational activity and water use can interfere with search operations and working dogs,” Manor Township police said in a Facebook post. “We appreciate the community’s cooperation and understanding as crews continue these efforts.”
Cook is described as being 6 feet, 3 inches tall, weighing 170 to 190 pounds, with hazel eyes and brown hair. He was last seen Thursday wearing a burgundy hoodie and dark jeans.
No one has been able to reach him by phone since Friday morning, when he texted his girlfriend, Harley Heatherington. They live together in Avonmore, a Westmoreland County community about a 40-minute drive south of the search area.
The message was incoherent, offering little clue as to where he might be, Heatherington told TribLive.
“If he’s out there and alive, I just want him to know that I love him,” she said.
His rental car was found abandoned near the Judge J. Frank Graff Bridge, which connects Manor Township and North Buffalo via routes 28 and 422. Police did not say when the vehicle was discovered.
If Cook does not turn up in the current search area, authorities may extend their efforts farther east and south, Kukuruda said. Search and rescue officials are also following up on every tip they receive about Cook’s possible whereabouts, he said.
“We still have hope,” Kukuruda said. “In the perfect world, we’re going to get lucky and maybe somebody picked him up and he’s hiding somewhere.”
Anyone who knows where Cook may be is asked to call 911. They may also call 724-548-5105, and ask for Sgt. Ashley Rensel or Officer Stephen Daub.
