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A North Carolina mom was seen on newly released video jumping into the water and swimming around hours before she was reported missing on the Caribbean island of Grenada.
Elizabeth “Liz” Waddell, 44, a physical therapist from Cary, NC, was staying at an Airbnb with a friend in the white sand beach resort neighborhood of Grand Anse in the capital of St. George’s the day she vanished, police said.
Haunting surveillance cameras from the rental property captured Waddell enjoying the tropical getaway hours before her last possible sighting, her family said Wednesday.
The North Carolina native was first seen walking towards the beach at 11:45 a.m. before jumping off a jetty and into the water two minutes later, according to the video shared by her family.
While Waddell was swimming, her friend was seen on the beach adjusting a chair underneath some trees.
Waddell returned to view of the camera 19 minutes later and began a trek towards Grand Anse beach at 12:04 a.m., her husband, Cailen Waddell, said.
“I went out and did this swim yesterday,” Cailen wrote on a new website, findliz.com, created to help in the search for his wife.
“It is easy. There are lots of rocks you can stop at if you need. The water is shallower near shore, where Liz could touch if she wanted and the water is like a lake, not like ocean water we experience in North Carolina.”
The video footage was the last known sighting of Waddell, but police are investigating reports that a group of jetskiers had interacted with a woman matching her description away from shore at 5:30 p.m.
“The police are working to connect with these people and determine a more precise location; they are also working to collect security footage from all Hotels along the Beach,” Cailen Waddell said.
A still image of Waddell captured the short blonde-haired woman wearing blue-and-white striped shorts and a burnt orange, loose crop top.
The Royal Grenada Police Force first reported the US national missing on July 23, sharing an appeal for fishermen, boat operators and residents of the coastal area to be on the lookout for the missing woman.
Since her disappearance, loved ones launched several efforts to help look for Waddell, including a GoFundMe, a website and a tip line.
Waddell’s husband, an operations manager for the Department of Parks, Recreation, and Cultural Resources in Cary, NC – flew down to the island nation to help with the search for his wife.
Over the course of a week, other friends and family joined the search but are now flying back home after local officials ruled no foul play was involved in Waddell’s disappearance.
“Despite our exhaustive efforts, we have not been successful. After careful and thoughtful consultation with family, local authorities, the U.S. Embassy, and others here in Grenada, I join authorities in believing there was no foul play,” the worried husband wrote Wednesday.
“The missing person investigation into her disappearance will continue, and we are specifically hopeful to determine her actions between the time she was last seen on video and the time she was seen in the water around 5:30, as well as any further sightings. No detail is too small,” he said.
Waddell is a known travel enthusiast, previously sharing photos from her international excursions with her husband and their adopted adult daughter, Suwan.
English (US)