Husband pleads for help after wife vanishes from their Texas home. What we know about missing Melonie Ballenger
Police race to find the Wylie mom-of-two who left behind her ‘critical’ blood pressure medication
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Your support makes all the difference.In the early hours of Monday morning, the Ballenger family woke to find their matriarch had vanished without a trace.
Melonie Ballenger went to bed with her husband, Daniel, in their Wylie, Texas, home on Sunday evening. But the following morning, the 46-year-old was gone, leaving behind her phone, purse and car, her husband said.
“She left with nothing… cash, credit card, wallet, ID…,” Daniel Ballenger said of his wife of 22 years.
He explained that the mom-of-two is due to undergo heart surgery in the coming weeks and also left medication “critical” to her health.
Now, police are racing against the clock to find the missing woman, retracing her steps since she was last sighted by anyone outside of her immediate family: at a Walmart on Saturday.
Here’s what we know about Melonie Ballenger’s disappearance:
Family members say Ballenger was home all Sunday feeling sick. Daniel Ballenger told local outlets that the couple went to bed at approximately 10 p.m. at their home on Parkwood Drive. But when he woke up, Melanie was nowhere to be found.
Daniel said his worries intensified when he realized she’d left without her blood pressure medication, as she’s scheduled to have heart surgery in the coming weeks.
“We were scared, obviously. Worried for her,” he told Fox 4 News. “Just want her back.”
At 6:35 a.m. Monday, Wylie police arrived at the family’s home after Daniel filed a missing person report. Local authorities have since launched an extensive search effort in a bid to track the mom down.
Police deployed K9 units and the Texas Department of Public Safety scoured the area via helicopter as they searched wooded areas, ponds, and neighborhoods around the family’s home with no success. Ballenger’s face is now on flyers dotted around her town.
Local residents are being asked to review their outdoor camera footage between 6:45 p.m. on Saturday and 6 a.m. on Monday to help cops search for clues.
On Thursday, the Texas Department of Public Safety issued a Coordinated Law Enforcement Adult Rescue (CLEAR) Alert, which helps authorities find missing, kidnapped, or abducted adults aged 18 to 64 who “are in immediate danger of injury or death”.
Sgt. Donald English confirmed to The Independent that there are “no new updates” from investigators.
Neighbors packed the Gateway Community Church offering prayers for Ballenger’s safe return at a vigil on Tuesday night after the country cast its ballots in the presidential election.
“Everybody’s really concerned about her,” said pastor Blake Switzer.
Daniel says he and the couple’s two daughters have been in a constant state of worry since they woke up Monday morning.
“I love her. I hope she’s safe and her daughters [are] missing her and we just want her back. Please come home,” he told WFAA.
Both the Ballenger family and police are urging the public to come forward if they have any information about the missing mom.
“If you see her, please, please, please call Wylie Police Department, so we can get her back,” Daniel pleaded.
Melonie is described as white female, about 5ft 7in tall, weighing roughly 135 pounds, with black hair and brown eyes.
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