Jessica Birge missing since 8/11/07 (BODY FOUND)

[MuffyBee]

Police search for missing New Braunfels woman

10:42 PM CDT on Tuesday, August 21, 2007

By KEVIN PETERS
KVUE News

Authorities are searching for a Central Texas woman who disappeared ten days ago during a tubing trip to New Braunfels.

Click here for larger video

On August 11, Jessica Birge, 25, disappeared after tubing the Comal River with friends.

Cindy Waechter, Jessica's mother, says her daughter met up with junior high school friends for the tubing trip. Afterwards, the group ate at a local restaurant and then met up at the Gruene Outpost River Lodge.

"Then my daughter got into her car to come home, and that's the last anybody has seen from her or heard from her," said Waechter.

KENS-TV

Jessica Birge

Comal County detectives are investigating it as a missing person case, but they have not ruled out foul play.

Birge was last seen wearing a pink bikini. She also has a tattoo of a cherry blossom branch on the back of her neck. She was last seen in a dark green 2001 Suzuki Grand Vitara, with Texas license plate K99-RNX.

If you have any information on Birge's whereabouts, call the Comal County Sheriff's Office at (830) 620-3400.

http://www.kvue.com/news/local/stories/082107kvuebirge-bkm.5948943f.html

The place Jessica was last seen was just less than an hours drive from where I live.  Gruene is near I35, and San Antonio, TX, and I 10.   I fear this might be one of those cases where there is proximity to fast and easy access to leave the area to a wide choice of places from where she went missing.  I haven't seen much on this case.  I saw the first alert on web, but hopped she was just spending time with friends somewhere.  But this has gone on longer and longer

[MuffyBee]

Woman missing for a week was last seen in New Braunfels
http://tinyurl.com/2psv2u

This article states she was last seen in New Braunfels, Texas, which is about 5 min. away from Gruene, which I mentioned in first post.  (just to clarify)

[MuffyBee]

    
   
   
25 year old Nursing Student missing over 12 days
http://www.590klbj.com/News/Story.aspx?ID=73583

[FoolsGold]

A 25 year old woman wearing a pink bikini is rather noticeable. If she had car trouble passersby would have noticed her. Is it known if she had a change of clothes in the car? Its the car that is easier to find.

[MuffyBee]

Jessie's credit cards nor her email account have been used since she went missing 12 days ago.  She told friends she was to start work the next day.  Authorities are waiting on cell phone records.
Nursing Student Disappears After Floating Comal With Friends
http://www.kxan.com/global/story.asp?s=6976769

[tcumom]

Muffy ~ You know I live north of Austin ~ YESTERDAY was the first I've heard of her disappearance.  I'm hoping it's been on the news and I just missed it 'cause of being out of pocket with school starting.

Do you know if she's from this area, originally?

I'll check back here around lunchtime.   

I just do not understand why it takes the cell phone companies so long to release records.......it seems ridiculous.......

[MuffyBee]

Muffy ~ You know I live north of Austin ~ YESTERDAY was the first I've heard of her disappearance.  I'm hoping it's been on the news and I just missed it 'cause of being out of pocket with school starting.

Do you know if she's from this area, originally?

I'll check back here around lunchtime.   

I just do not understand why it takes the cell phone companies so long to release records.......it seems ridiculous.......

tcumom ~ I haven't been able to get much more information that what has been posted to here.  I first saw the story when I was looking at one of the local news sites, and it was just a very small article, with very little information.  I thought perhaps she would show up.  But she didn't.  The next stories had a little more, such as description of her clothing, car and etc.  I see a few more articles on the web, but they seem to have the same information.  I will see what else I can find.

[bleachedblack]

Missing Texas Nursing Student Simply Vanished
Two Weeks Later and Still Nothing
Published Aug 26, 2007

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/358365/missing_texas_nursing_student_simply.html

[klaasend]

Jessica Birge

[pdh3]

Such a pretty girl. 
I hope someone hears positive news soon.

It's really beginning to look like something happened to her....

[MsVada]

Such a pretty girl. 
I hope someone hears positive news soon.

It's really beginning to look like something happened to her....

 think so too Pdh, 

[MuffyBee]

   
LOCAL NEWS
Thursday      August      30         2007
   

   3:11 pm

x92
Police searching for woman last seen in New Braunfels
8/29/2007 6:22 PM
By: News 8 Austin Staff

      
          
San Marcos police and the Comal County Sheriff's office are looking for a woman who has been missing since Aug. 11.

Jessica Birge was last seen at the Gruene Outpost River Lodge in New Braunfels.

She's 25 years old, has red hair, brown eyes and is about 5-foot-7-inches tall. She was wearing a pink bikini at the time. Birge has a tattoo of a cherry blossom branch on the back of her neck.

Her car is also missing. It's a dark green Suzuki Grand Vitara, with Texas plates K99-RNX.

Anyone with information about Birge's whereabouts is asked to call the Comal County Sheriff's Office at (830) 620-3400.

http://www.news8austin.com/content/your_news/default.asp?ArID=191065

Still missing, and the month is almost over...

[pdh3]

This poor young woman seems to have vanished off the face of the Earth. I feel for her family.

[MuffyBee]

This poor young woman seems to have vanished off the face of the Earth. I feel for her family.

There doesn't seem to be a lot of information available than what has been posted.   

[pdh3]

I think this case was on Nancy Grace last night. I was busy and not paying attention until I heard the name. They think she may have accidently driven into the water because apparently she had been drinking a lot the night she disappeared. The route she would have taken is along a river, or some kind of waterway.

[MuffyBee]

Lost without a trace
Jessica Birge, 25, missing for 27 days

By Lynn Walker
Thursday, September 6, 2007

http://www.timesrecordnews.com/news/2007/sep/06/description-of-missing-woman/

[MuffyBee]

34 days and no answers
By David Saleh Rauf
The Herald-Zeitung    

Published September 14, 2007
http://herald-zeitung.com/story.lasso?ewcd=0e29bfe75b959687&-session=HeraldZeitung:40DA3C7A164ab33F16pkrr60FD3B
(snipped)
 Over the weekend, Comal County investigators turned up a new lead but remain wary of providing false hope to Birges family and friends. With the help of a rescue dive team from San Marcos, detectives tentatively combed a segment of the Guadalupe River on Saturday  from the Gruene River Lodge to the Common Street Bridge  with sonar equipment. Investigators said the premliminary sonar search turned up two areas of interest that will be looked at more thoroughly next week when the river flow levels have decreased.
(snipped)
 In the past two weeks, Birges story has aired on two cable news channels; each time a local reporter or other guests have insinuated that alcohol played a role and that Birge probably drove into the river. Since the airing of both shows, detectives have declined to verify if alcohol was involved and have said that they have no tangible clues to lead them to believe that she drove in the river.

Still, in light of the recent areas of interest located by San Marcos rescue divers, a state and federal urban and search team is scheduled to scour portions of the Gaudalupe River on Tuesday with high-tech sonar equipment that should lead investigators to more definite answers.

Theres nothing that indicates the car went into the river, Sgt. Tommy Ward said Wednesday. Once the levels of the river drop down we will concentrate some of the efforts on the river to clear that area, so we dont have that area to even contend wit
(snipped)

[MuffyBee]

Corps to slow river for search
By David Saleh Rauf and Gerard MacCrossan
The Herald-Zeitung    
http://herald-zeitung.com/story.lasso?ewcd=90d9a3ae0414de75&-session=HeraldZeitung:40DA3C7A165730D7D7HyK189C364
Published September 15, 2007
(snipped)
 The high flow levels created by recent rains has hampered the ability of the sheriffs office to conduct searches of the Guadalupe River for Jessica Birge, who last seen Aug. 11 at the Gruene River Lodge in New Braunfels. The sheriffs department has said they held back on requesting the Corps. to reduce discharge into the river earlier because they didnt have any tangible evidence that would point them to the river. The sheriffs department has also expressed concerns for downstream users who could be impacted if a major rain event hit while the reduced discharge was in effect.

Earlier this week, County Judge Danny Scheel requested the Corps decrease Canyon Dams release, so that search efforts for Birge could be conducted Monday. Scheels request come on the heels of information that a San Marcos rescue team using sonar equipment to comb a segment of the river over the weekend located two areas of interest.

Investigators are expected conduct a thorough search of the area between the Gruene River Lodge and the Common Street Bridge Monday. Based on their findings, a federal and state urban search team  Texas Task Force 1  could be requested to assist the search on the river with high-tech metal detecting equipment. Or the river could be ruled out as a possibility all together some time next week.
(snipped)

[MuffyBee]

Search For New Braunfels Woman Turns To River

Sep 17, 2007 08:50 PM
(snipped)
"We've used drone aircraft," said Lt. Mark Reynolds of the Comal County Sheriff's Office. "We've used fixed wing aircraft. We're pretty sure we can't locate her vehicle on land."

Five weeks after Birge's disappearance, Reynolds said it's time to turn to the water.

"We have wanted to search this part of the river, because it was her starting point, and we have never since her disappearance been able to thoroughly conduct a search," Reynolds said.
(snipped)

[tcumom]

Jessica's body has been found. 

Per KVUE 5:00 news in Austin, Texas.  Details to follow.

So very sad.  I would imagine it was recovered from the river as it was being searched.