Woman vanishes after calling 911 to report child on side of Alabama freeway

A search is underway for a 25-year-old woman who went missing Thursday night after she called 911 from a highway in Hoover, Alabama, to report that she had seen a toddler walking along the side of the interstate, authorities said.

The Hoover Police Department reports that Carlethia "Carlee" Nichole Russell called 911 emergency dispatchers just after 9:30 p.m. local time Thursday and informed them that she had stopped to check on a young child that she had seen walking on the side of Interstate 459.

Police said that after speaking to 911, Russell immediately called a family member. During that call, the family member "lost contact with" Russell, "but the line remained open," Hoover Police Lt. Daniel Lowe said in a news conference Friday.