Police Call Off Search for Photographer Who Vanished Taking Pictures at Beach

Photographer Joseph Neill

Police have called off the search for a missing photographer who disappeared after going out to take photos of high tides at a U.S. Beach.

72-year-old photographer Joseph Neill went to Horsfall Beach in North Bend, Oregon to take pictures of the King Tides over a week ago — but never returned.

According to Neill’s family, the photographer was last seen leaving his home in Coos County, Oregon, on December 15 to go to the local beach.

His vehicle was found early in the morning of December 16 near Jordan Point on Transpacific Parkway, but there were no signs of Neill himself.

72-year-old photographer Joseph Neill has been missing since December 15.

First responders and law enforcement teams, including the U.S. Coast Guard and search-and-rescue K9 units, searched the area to track Neill’s whereabouts.

According to a report by local news outlet Kezi.com, North Bend police suspended their search on Thursday afternoon after finding no new information for three days.

The North Bend Police ultimately determined that Neill, who is a business owner in Oregon as well as an avid outdoor photographer, was “no longer in that area.”

The Coat Guard also briefly searched for Neill as well, but suspended those efforts “as there was evidence to suggest that Mr. Neill was elsewhere,” according to the Coos County Sheriff’s Office.

Despite this, Neill’s family and hundreds of volunteers are still searching and holding out hope for the photographer. Locals from neighboring towns have joined the search, searching trails and coastal areas in the rain and mud.

“Papa is a survivalist and could fashion anything to help him get through a tough situation if needed,” Neill’s children say in a statement to PEOPLE.

Neill’s children also say their father “likely would have either walked to a few low points inland for reflections of the full moon with the king tide or perhaps along the shoreline” near Horsfall Beach.

King Tides is a non-scientific term people often use to describe the highest predicted high tide of the year at a coastal location.

While there is no confirmation that the King Tides are the reason for Neill’s disappearance, local authorities are reminding people to be safe in the local area.