Family of missing Santee Cooper security officer still searching for answers
SANTEE, SC Sept 30 2017
Almost eight months ago, a Santee Cooper security officer went missing while on-duty.
On Wednesday, the search continues for Michael Curry, still with almost no clues as to how he disappeared.
The 55-year-old man went missing on Feb. 1 after he missed a radio check-in while on duty at the Jefferies Hydroelectric Station in Moncks Corner, Berkeley County Sheriff Duane Lewis said.
“I don’t want people to just see a picture, a face on the TV and not connect him to a family that he loves dearly and a family that loves him,” Curry’s sister Susie Brown said.
One theory that some suspect is that the security officer left town.
“I don’t care what anyone says. I know in my heart that he wouldn’t walk out on his family or his wife. He is a good man. He’s responsible, dependable, reliable, you can set your clock to him,” Brown said.
“He loved his family and he was a very responsible person,” Curry’s brother Willie said.
“He showed me too much as a father all my life that he would do that. 1+1=2. The story I’m getting is 1+1=3,” Curry’s son Anthony said. “There’s a whole big thing missing. What is it? I don’t know.”
The Santee Cooper property is surrounded by water and woods.
There have been dive, foot, grid, and helicopter searches on dozens of acres of property.
Santee Cooper reports the investigation is still ongoing.
“That’s all we get…they’re still looking,” Curry’s son Joshua said, adding the family has had no communication with Santee Cooper for approximately four months. “That’s the last we heard from them. You’d think they would keep reaching out but it seems like we have to keep the pressure on them. They’re not giving us the answers we need to know.”
“If they say they’re looking, we want evidence that they’re looking. If nothing happened, we need to know. If there’s footage or anything that we can follow up on or any leads or anything,” Curry’s brother Mark said. “Right now, we have nothing.”
“Anything is better than this feeling of not knowing. It’s an unbearable feeling no one should have to go through,” Anthony Curry said.
The family says the disappearance is hardest on Curry’s wife. They were married more than 30 years.
“It’s heartbreaking. I see it her face. She deserves answers, as well,” Anthony Curry said.
“I can see the pain in her face every time I see her,” Joshua Curry added.
All the family wants are answers.
“You never think that it could happen to you. I want people to realize that he’s a person and it can happen to them. I never thought that it could happen to me or someone I loved,” Willy Curry said. “I want somebody if they know anything or know somebody that has any information that would help or to give us a better understanding of what happened.”
“We’re a family. We were raised to know that family is everything,” Brown said. “We love Mike very much. We miss him dearly. We want to know if there’s anyone that can help us. We need answers.”
The family said, no matter what, their faith and love will keep them strong.
Santee Cooper representatives report SLED, Berkeley and Charleston County Sheriff’s offices are still looking into Michael Curry’s disappearance. There is currently no limit on how long the investigation will last.
