Family desperate for answers as search for missing Oregon father continues in Hernando County
WEEKI WACHEE, Fla. - It's been one month since Timothy Braddy's family reported him missing. The 34-year-old father was driving from Oregon to Tampa for a new construction job when his truck broke down in Hernando County.
When his family didn't hear from him after his phone died, they filed a missing person report in Oregon.
Four days later, Hernando County deputies found Braddy's truck on US-19 near Weeki Wachee High School.
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Police back in Oregon consider Braddy to be potentially endangered.
His parents, who live in the Panhandle, are now in the Weeki Wachee area to help boost their son's profile. They say they are desperate to find their son.
His mother, Kimberly Braddy, says their emotions spike with each tip. "Then it peters out [and we say] 'oh, we'll just try again.'"
The best tip they have gotten so far is from someone who heard him on the phone with his fiancée the same night his truck broke down.
MORE: Man's truck found by Hernando County deputies four days after Oregon family report him missing
"It's hard for me to sit still, because I get quiet, and then I think of the things I do not want to think about," said his father, Terry Braddy.
A private search team called "The Essentials" said they have combed over 100 linear miles of woods in western Hernando and Citrus counties. Three weeks after Braddy's disappearance, the team said they located items that they believe belonged to Timothy: a pack of cigarettes and a construction vest. They were located several miles from where his truck was eventually found.
Items possibly belonging to Timothy Braddy: a construction vest in the same size he owned, and a pack of cigarettes that were the same brand he smoked.
"Every day we take it a step further into the woods," a representative of the search group told FOX 13. "It's a wooded, very thick vegetated area. We have not only the elements to deal with, but also the wildlife."
Hernando County deputies have done several searches themselves, including with helicopters and K9 officers. They said Timothy made paranoid statements to family prior to disappearing, but don't know if that's a relevant clue.
His parents are pleading for persistent attention until he is found.
"I am hoping he is alive and well," said Terry Braddy.
"I see people and I wonder, is that him?" said Kimberly Braddy. "I am constantly looking and seeing if that could possibly be T.J."
Anyone with information is asked to call Hernando County Sheriff's Office at 352-442-4758 or dial 911. You can also contact The Essentials by submitting tips through their website: www.wearetheessentials.com/contact.