MINNEAPOLIS (KMSP) -
Residents of Evansdale, Iowa are searching for two girls who seem to have disappeared in broad daylight.
The girls, cousins, were being babysat by their grandmother when the two decided to go for a bike ride just after noon Friday. Police say this is the last time anyone saw them.
The girls' bikes were found near Meyers Lake. Authorities say one of the girls' purses was also found nearby. Police have yet to find any other trace of eight-year-old Elizabeth Collins and 10-year-old Lyric Cook.
Chief Deputy Rick Abben with the Black Hawk County Sheriff's Office says crews have been searching around the clock since the two went missing. Volunteers and officers searched into the night Friday and continued the search Saturday.
He estimated more than 200 volunteers and 75 officers were out looking for the two girls Saturday afternoon.
Crews are also combing Meyers Lake. Abben said police have no reason to suspect the girls are in the lake, but said they are broadening the search in hopes of finding any sign of the two cousins.
Authorities will assess the situation at dusk to determine if crews on foot will continue searching Saturday night.
Abben said those investigating the case are puzzled by the disappearance and how the two could simply vanish in the middle of the day. He said they are looking into a few tips, but do not have any solid leads in the disappearances.
The FBI and the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation are assisting Evansdale and Waterloo police and fire departments. The Black Hawk Sheriff's Office is also helping in the search.
