~

 By Bruce A. Smith

 The tranquilly of a warm, sunny spring afternoon in Graham was shattered when Pierce County Sheriff deputies descended upon an abandoned car parked in the woods alongside Webster Hill Rd.

 The vehicle, a small red compact, belonged to an Orting woman who has been missing since Saturday night, according to Sgt Mike Lundborg of the PCSD.

 The woman was later identified by Facebook posters as Nicole White, and her car was described as a 2004 Dodge Neon with no license plates. How the vehicle came to be in Graham is not known at this time. The poster also indicates that she was last known to be heading to the Jeepers tavern in Spanaway.

 In response to the vehicle find police combed the area with K-9 patrols, along with local Search and Rescue teams. However, Sgt Lundborg said that nothing had been found of the woman, nor any leads to her whereabouts.

 Local residents were greatly alarmed by the heavy police presence, with up to eight cruisers reported at the scene, and many individuals searching the wooded hillsides, neighboring farmlands and pastures.

 Webster Rd resident John Pethick told Lisa Cool of the Mountain News, “We did see a bloodhound unit searching the road past our house toward the creek around 7 pm.”

 Sgt Lundborg told the Mountain News that the family of Nicole White did not want to talk with any media at this time, but they were in the preliminary stages of passing out flyers showing pictures of the missing woman. These flyers ask the community for assistance in finding her, and contain several phone numbers to call if you have any information to share:

 “Jill,” at 253. 326. 7098 or 253. 341. 7404

Orting Police Department: 360. 893. 3111

Pierce County Sheriff’s Department: 253. 798. 4721

Poster of Nicole White, as seen on Facebook:

Pierce County Sheriff’s Department cruisers deployed at the scene of Nicole White’s car, in Graham.