A search is underway after a 22-month-old boy went missing from his home in Salyersville, Kentucky on Sunday night. Family members believe youngster Kenneth Howard may have simply walked out of the house.
Helicopters and search dogs have been scouring the area and volunteers are providing food and water for search teams, but as yet there’s been no sign.
Panic-stricken father, Elden Howard, told WYMT he has no idea where his son went.
“Yeah, it’s just like he disappeared. No sign, no nothing. That’s the reason I’m starting to think, if we can’t find him, somebody’s picked him up,” he said.
Law enforcement officials haven’t said what the boy’s parents were doing when he vanished.
"I guess it's adrenaline. I can't rest, can't eat. I've ate one bologna sandwich since Sunday," said Elden Howard. https://t.co/fx98W3jRE6
— WYMT (@WYMT) May 14, 2019
Officers are searching a wooded hillside behind and around the boy’s home. The area is steep and covered in trees and brush, making the search difficult.
“I mean how far can a 22-month-old child get? So at this time, we’re just concentrating on this area,” said Magoffin County Sheriff Carson Montgomery.
Offering a reward
The colder, wetter weather conditions are also a cause for concern.
“It’s gut-wrenching. It really is,” emergency manager and family friend Robert Prater told WKYT.com. “As cool as it got last night and the rain, you start to worry about hypothermia.”
Dad Elden Howard is offering a $5,000 reward to anyone who finds his son.
Crews have been using K9 teams, helicopters, & drones all day to search Magoffin Co. hillsides for missing 22-month-old Kenneth Howard pic.twitter.com/aZPbYJZIUA
— Hillary Thornton Smith (@HillaryUKPR) May 13, 2019
This is so heartbreaking; I cannot begin to imagine what this family is going through.
Please share to spread the word; I hope he is found soon!
