The search for 30-year-old Dara Watson has been suspended.
The search for Watson continued Sunday as multiple agencies roamed the woods surrounding the area her burnt SUV was found. Watson's parents arrived at the search site around 2:00 Sunday afternoon. Police ushered them into the Mobile Command Center set up on Halfway Creek Road between Highway 41 and Steed Creek Road.
Charleston County Sheriff deputies lead the investigation into the whereabouts of the missing Mt. Pleasant woman. Mt. Pleasant police, the Department of Natural Resources officers, forensic service officials and search dogs are on foot in the Francis Marion National Forest. The final search crew of the day entered the woods around 2:00 p.m.
Mt. Pleasant police also investigate the death of Watson's live-in fiance, David Hedrick. The 34-year-old was found dead in their shared home Friday afternoon.
According to the couple's online registry, it was only 273 days until they were to marry in the South Pacific.
The Charleston County Coroner did not release Hedrick's official cause of death, instead saying it is under investigation, but putting an urgency on investigators to find Watson.
"At this point it's an active investigation and we're really trying to put the pieces of the puzzle together," Chief Harry Sewell of the Mount Pleasant Police said. "Nothing is more important that this young lady's life."
Watson was last seen on Monday in Boone, NC by her mother. A spokesperson for the Charleston County Sheriff's Department said her 2006 silver GMC Envoy was found "badly burnt" about 100 yards from Halfway Creek Road on Tuesday. It took several days to identify the car because of the severity of the burns.
Police said Watson's cell phone was last used on Wednesday, near Venning Road in Mt. Pleasant. A text was sent to Watson's boss saying she was fine.
After Hedrick was found and pronounced dead at their Rivertowne subdivision home on Friday afternoon, Mt. Pleasant police released an official missing person's report for Watson.
On Friday, officials determined the burnt SUV belonged to Watson.
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