Missing Pennsylvania grandmother likely fell into sinkhole while searching for her cat, police say

Rescuers are searching for a missing Pennsylvania grandmother who is believed to have fallen deep into a sinkhole while searching for her cat with her young granddaughter, authorities said.

Rescuers are searching for a missing Pennsylvania grandmother who is believed to have fallen deep into a sinkhole while searching for her cat with her young granddaughter, authorities said. Police received a phone call around 1 a.m. Tuesday from a relative of Elizabeth Pollard, who said the 64-year-old had left to look for her cat Monday afternoon and had not been heard from since, Trooper Steve Limani of the Pennsylvania State Police in Greensburg said in a news conference Tuesday. Pollard was last seen around 5 p.m. Monday in Marguerite, an unincorporated area of Unity Township, Limani said, in part of southwestern Pennsylvania dotted with old coal mines. During their search, police discovered Pollard’s vehicle parked near a restaurant with her five-year-old granddaughter inside – and a fresh, deep sinkhole just steps away. “We at that point in time realized that this could be a very bad situation,” Limani said. Pollard’s granddaughter was unharmed, despite being in the car for nearly 12 hours in below-freezing temperatures, Limani said.