HCSO Investigation Turns Up Surveillance of Missing Woman Prompting Search North of Myers Flat

As the rain continues and the temperatures drop, the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office has enlisted the help of area volunteer fire fighters as the search for Zoe Penrod continues.

Penrod was reported missing on January 1 after leaving her home on December 31, suffering from post-partum psychosis according to her fiancé David Boyett. Boyett told Redheaded Blackbelt in an interview that he had spoken with Penrod around 8:30 a.m. on December 31 in the yard of the couple’s residence. After checking on the couple’s five-month-old son, Boyett stated he returned to the yard to find Penrod had left.

After the initial report was made, personnel from the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office conducted a search of the area both on foot and using a drone, as well as interviewing Boyett, neighbors, and friends of Penrod, according to Second District Supervisor, Michelle Bushnell.

No clues to the missing mother’s whereabouts were discovered.

A community-led search of the area took place on January 7 with assistance from the volunteer agencies, including the Southern Humboldt Technical Rescue Team, and deputies from the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office.

Though the search did not reveal the whereabouts of Penrod, additional information was brought forward about a possible sighting of the missing 38-year-old north of Myers Flat along the Avenue of the Giants.

Malachi Church, a volunteer firefighter with the Salmon Creek Fire Protection District, was requested, along with other volunteers, to assist the HCSO in a search one mile north of Myers Flat.

In a phone interview, Church shared that searchers were given a flyer with a surveillance image of a person in what appeared to be a green bathrobe bathroom and green slipper-type shoes walking past the Drive Thru Tree located at the north intersection where Boy Scout Road meet the Avenue (Highway 254). Searchers were told that the image was of Zoe Penrod, however the image on the flyer was blurry.

Bushnell, who has been in close contact with search personnel and HCSO on the ongoing search efforts, shared an update from Sheriff William Honsal, who stated, “[The] Humboldt County Sheriff’s Department is searching areas off of [Highway] 254 due to recent information that [Zoe] was in the area on 12/31.”

Even with the inclement weather, approximately 50 searchers turned out today, attempting to locate the missing woman. “There [were] several different volunteer fire departments, and other volunteer organizations, represented there along with the Sheriff’s Department,” Church stated. “We had a wide variety of volunteers,” he said, including volunteers from Rio Dell and Blue Lake, and from as far away as Sonoma County.

Though searchers were drenched, they were happy to aid in the search efforts. “You get to show up and … there’s always a sense of community among volunteers. [A]ll of you are there, maybe for different reasons, but you’re all there for the same purpose,” Church stated.

The searchers covered both sides of the Avenue of the Giants from their base station one mile north of Myers Flat, and several miles north, without discovering any notable clues before Church completed his assigned search duties.

Today marks the tenth day since Zoe Penrod has been missing. If anyone has any information about her whereabouts or disappearance, they are encouraged to contact the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office at 707-445-7251 or by calling the anonymous tip line at 707-268-2539. Any information may be valuable in the efforts to locate the missing woman. 

Note: Malachi Church is the son of Redheaded Blackbelt Owner/Editor, Kym Kemp.

Earlier: 

• [UPDATE 12:46 p.m.] Missing Myers Flat Woman May Be Experiencing a Mental Health Crisis
• Search Today in Myers Flat to Find Missing New Mother Zoe Penrod
• Concerned Community Member Initiates Search for Missing Mother