United Cajun Navy offers search and rescue services in hunt for Nancy Guthrie
TUCSON, Ariz. – A Louisiana-based nonprofit that specializes in providing disaster relief, search and rescue, and aid during emergencies said it has offered its services to Arizona authorities in the search for Nancy Guthrie.
Josh Gill, the incident commander for the United Cajun Navy (UCN), said the group reached out to the Pima County Sheriff's Office and other law enforcement agencies involved in the Guthrie case.
"We want to provide what we can… to help with the search and, hopefully, bring Mrs. Guthrie home," Gill told Fox News Digital outside of Guthrie's Catalina Foothills home. "We just want to provide some resources. I know they're accepting volunteers now, and they just want to make sure the volunteers aren't potentially contaminating an investigation or disrupting an investigation."
A spokesperson for the sheriff's department told Fox News Digital that the agency was unaware of UCN's offer.
"We have not been advised of this group reaching out to PCSD about helping with search efforts," the spokesperson said.
The UCN has assisted law enforcement with searches for missing persons, such as when dozens of children went missing amid severe floods in Kerrville, Texas last year.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., once praised the nonprofit in a video message in which he spoke about disaster relief.
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The investigation into Guthrie's disappearance has entered its fourth week and the whereabouts of the 84-year-old remain unknown. In addition, no arrests have been made.
"Volunteer organizations sometimes aren't necessarily looked at as a viable resource," Gill said, noting that some groups may lack experience in missing persons searches.
The UCN reached out to the sheriff's office soon after Guthrie went missing, Gill said. The offer was prompted, in part, by the despair of Guthrie's family, including her daughter, NBC "Today" co-host Savannah Guthrie.
"To see Savannah Guthrie in tears, breaking down, I can only imagine if that was my family member," Gill said. "Knowing that somebody's family member is out there for such a long time, we want to help."
Earlier this month, Savannah Guthrie’s husband, Mike Feldman, visited "Today" on behalf of his wife to show appreciation for the support the family has received, a source told Fox News Digital.
Feldman has been traveling back and forth from New York to Arizona, where Savannah is with her family, as the search for her mother continues.
On Tuesday, she posted a video on Instagram where she pleaded for her mother's kidnappers to return her for a $1 million reward.
"We still believe in a miracle. We still believe that she can come home," an emotional Savannah Guthrie said. "We also know that she may be lost. She may already be gone."
"If this is what is to be, then we will accept it," she added. "Someone out there knows something."