Bluffton man, 79, with memory issues still missing week after walking away from facility
Bluffton police say 79-year-old Jack Tribble is still missing nearly a week after he walked out of a memory care facility last Tuesday.
Tribble was last seen leaving The Palmettos of Bluffton, an elderly care home located along U.S. 170, at around 6 p.m. Aug. 23, wearing an orange hat, white shirt, tan jacket and black pants. Tribble is 5-foot-10 with grayish-brown hair and a slender build.
Police have stopped actively searching for Tribble — including search parties, helicopters, ATVs and K-9 units — after they “saturated” the immediate area with search attempts.
Although police have discontinued their on-the-ground search, they are still investigating, Perez said. The Bluffton Police Department is currently contacting businesses in the area to look for potential security footage of Tribble.
Given Tribble’s weak physical condition, authorities determined he was likely within a 1.6-mile radius of the facility, according to Sgt. Bonifacio Perez, a spokesperson for the Bluffton Police Department. Although searches were concentrated in this area, deputies also canvassed along U.S. 170 and 278.
“We’re very thankful to (the Bluffton Police Department), but we’re still no further along in trying to find him,” Tribble’s wife, Margaret Tribble, said in a video shared to Facebook.
Tribble’s scent was lost by bloodhounds at the intersection of U.S. 170 and Bufflehead Ln., Perez said, indicating he might have headed south from The Palmettos.
Tribble has dementia with Lewy bodies, according to Margaret Tribble. The condition is a type of progressive dementia leading to declines in thinking, reasoning and independent function, and can result in confusion, hallucinations and slowness of movement.
Due to his condition, Tribble typically has the “social capability of a friendly 5-year-old,” Margaret Tribble told WSAV Daily News. Now that he’s been off his medication for nearly a week, he’s likely to be “feeling isolated, alone and very frightened,” she said.
Margaret and Jack Tribble have been married for over 50 years. She is offering a cash reward for anyone able to bring Tribble home.
Sally Zuniga, a “concerned citizen” from Bluffton, started a Facebook group Friday to organize efforts and assemble search parties. As of Monday morning, the group had over 450 members.
Margaret Tribble and Zuniga did not immediately respond to requests for comment by The Island Packet.
Police are also asking residents who live in neighborhoods around 170 and Sun City to review video from their home security systems, including video doorbells. Additionally, drivers with dashcams who were in the area Tuesday evening are encouraged to check their footage for any sign of Tribble.
Anyone with information on Tribble’s location is encouraged to call Detective Sgt. Ryan Fazekas at 843-706-4513, the Bluffton Police Department’s anonymous tip line at 843-706-4560 or the Spanish tip line at 843-706-7806.
This story was originally published August 29, 2022 at 12:05 PM.
