NO TRACE OF MISSING COLLEGE CLASS

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THE PRESSING POST

- Monday, October 6, 2003 -

NO TRACE OF MISSING COLLEGE CLASS; 8 Students and a Professor Seemingly Vanish into the Woods

By Elijah Corners
NEWS STAFF REPORTER

On the morning of September 27th, a college botany class from Allister University set out on a routine field trip into the forest where they would be studying different plants. In the past week, people around Berry Creek have been volunteering to help search but have come up empty-handed in their efforts to find David Kitt, 54, Nathaniel Oswald, 23, Louisa Rhodes, 21, Declan Lloyd, 21, Kiran Venkatesh, 21, Zoe Walters, 21, Rachel Berkee, 21, Alice Sloan, 20, and Joseph Richie, 20.

It is believed that the class got turned around somewhere on their journey and the unfortunate weather that day made matters worse. "I'm sure the stress of the torrential downpour that day disoriented them and threw them off their path," said Lt. Johnathan Cooper of Newtown County Sheriff's Department. "We are not giving up hope."

As the mystery continues to deepen, alumni of the university reflect on their experience on that very same field trip that David Kitt, 54, has been taking his students on since he began teaching botany and biology at the university over 25 years ago.

"Professor Kitt would have never taken them on that field trip had he known the weather conditions would be so bad," said Anna Crenshaw, 27, a former student of the now missing professor. "That field trip was an amazing experience for me. He has done it every year successfully. I just hope they are found safe."

Persons knowing of the class's whereabouts are requested to contact Sheriff's Department Policeman Keith Burns at 546-2455, or the Newtown County Police Department at 323-4469.

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