Nearly $100,000 Raised To Help Find Storrs Woman Missing In Japan

STORRS, CT — Nearly $100,000 has been raised to help the Storrs family of Patricia Wu-Murad locate her in Japan. She was on a hiking trip along the Kumano Kodo trail, according to family members via Go-Fund-Me.

Family members have set up a Go-Fund-Me account to help them finance the search. As of Monday evening, a total of $90,188 had been pledged with a goal of $100,000.

According to the account summary, "My family and I urgently need your help. My name is Murphy Murad, daughter of Patricia Wu-Murad, a U.S. citizen who has gone missing while hiking the Kumano Kodo trail in Japan. My mother was reported missing to local authorities on Monday evening, April 10, and despite a 72-hour search and rescue effort, she has yet to be found. Our family was notified by the U.S. Embassy on Thursday, April 14, and we are desperate to find her."

Family members said via the Go-Fund-Me that they were to visit the Gojo Police Department on Tuesday. A private search-and-rescue team was deployed early on the morning of April 16 and has so far "come up empty on searches that include "areas where individuals are more likely to get lost, fall from heights, or get swept up by the nearby river."

"At this point the private search-and-rescue team believes, that a very irregular situation occurred on April 10," family members said via the Go-Fund-Me page.

The last known text message exchange with Pattie Murad was with a family member on April 9, family members said.