Community search finds Mississippi woman alive 3 days after disappearance

A Mississippi woman who was reported missing after no one had heard from her for three days was found alive following an extensive search involving law enforcement and local residents across Perry County.

Kayla Booth was found Tuesday, a day after deputies located her vehicle and began searching for her in Perry County, in southeastern Mississippi near Hattiesburg. She was taken to a hospital in stable condition.

The search began Monday when the department received a report about a suspicious vehicle that had remained parked in the Hintonville community. As deputies were responding, the department was told that Booth had not been seen or heard from and had shown no activity on social media since Saturday.

Officials determined that the vehicle belonged to Booth and found clothing believed to be hers near a small swimming hole. Deputies from Perry and Greene counties began gathering information about her last known whereabouts as the search expanded.

Off-duty deputies joined the effort, searching on foot and using a drone to cover more terrain. Department administrators took over routine duties and calls so additional deputies could remain focused on finding Booth.

A local judge and a nearby resident brought a lightweight boat that could be carried down a steep embankment to reach the creek. Wildlife officers used sonar to search the swimming hole and determined that Booth was not in the water.

Landowners opened gates, camps, hunting clubs and other private property, allowing search teams to check places where Booth may have sought shelter from the heat, insects or other elements.

After the day shift stopped briefly to rest, other deputies continued searching through early Tuesday along Thompson Creek, nearby roads, camps and hunting properties.

A camp owner later provided investigators with photographs showing Booth on the property at about 3 p.m. Monday, roughly two to three miles from where her vehicle was found. Tracking dogs from the Mississippi Department of Corrections were requested based on the new information.

Booth was found alive as the tracking teams arrived and prepared to begin searching. The sheriff’s department did not disclose where she was located or provide details about her condition beyond saying she was stable and receiving the care she needed.

“Far too often, law enforcement press releases end with the words, ‘This was not the outcome we hoped for, but it gives the family closure,’” the sheriff’s office said in a statement. “Thanks to the relentless efforts of Perry County employees, the Greene County Sheriff’s Department, the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks, the Mississippi Department of Corrections, local citizens, landowners, and everyone who refused to give up, this story had a different ending.”