Missing vulnerable adults, caretakers found safe at Tacoma hotel
Four vulnerable adults and their two caretakers who were reported missing Tuesday were found safe Wednesday morning at a hotel in Tacoma, according to the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department.
Nicole Emanuel, 46, and Jessica Newkirk, 33, are contracted by the Washington State Department of Social and Health Services to care for four adults with varying physical and mental health issues. The group of six people were reported missing after they left a DSHS office in Tacoma, where caretakers were reporting concerns about the safety of their living arrangements.
The group did not leave information about where they were going after they left the office, DSHS spokesperson Chris Wright said. An investigator sent Tuesday to perform a welfare check did not find anyone at the Spanaway adult home where they lived. Families of the four vulnerable adults hadn’t heard from them for at least five days.
All six people were found after a caretaker emailed DSHS, telling the office they were at a hotel in Tacoma, deputies said.
Deputies initially reported the group had last been seen around 2:50 p.m. Monday at the DSHS office in Tacoma. According to a news release from the department, one of the caretakers told DSHS staff she was looking for a place to bring the people she was caring for because she was concerned about both their safety and her own at their adult family home.
Sheriff Ed Troyer said Tuesday that DSHS officials declined to help, telling Newkirk and Emanuel they had to uphold their contract.
DSHS spokesperson Chris Wright gave a different account Wednesday.
“They came to the Tacoma DSHS office Monday afternoon and reported not feeling safe,” Wright said. “At that time, we began a process of looking for placements for those four clients in the adult family home. At that point, that’s when they left and did not leave contact info or where they would be.”
Wright said DSHS works as quickly as possible to find new living arrangements for people who report feeling unsafe in their situation. He said the timeline for finding housing depends on each case and what options are available on short notice. The DSHS office where the group came for help does not have resources to house people at the office.
Investigators are talking to the caretakers to find out why they left their residence, according to the sheriff’s department.
There are more than 3,000 adult family homes in the state that act as long-term care facilities regulated by the DSHS, Wright said. Typically, they are converted from private homes and can house two to six people.
This story was originally published August 25, 2021 at 12:15 PM.
