Search underway for Tennessee pair missing in Alaska for more than a week

A search is underway in Fairbanks, Alaska, for a pair of travelers from Tennessee who were reported missing a week ago, authorities said.

Jonas Bare, 50, and Cynthia Hovsepian, 37, checked in at a Fairbanks Airbnb on Aug. 9 and were scheduled to stay through Aug. 11 but never checked out, Fairbanks police said in a statement.

On Aug. 12, they were reporting missing. They left belongings behind at the short-term rental, the department said.

An SUV Bare rented through Turo was expected to be returned Aug. 11, but was found the night of Aug. 12 at Chena Hot Springs Resort in Fairbanks, state troopers said in a statement.

The pair was last seen hiking Aug. 10 at the resort, the agency said in a missing persons bulletin issued Wednesday.

“Search and rescue efforts are still ongoing at Chena Hot Springs Resort with trained search teams and dog teams,” Alaska state troopers spokesperson Austin McDaniel said by email Friday.

Fairbanks officers, helicopters and all-terrain vehicles were also assisting in the search, state troopers said in a statement Tuesday.

The relationship between Bare and Hovsepian wasn’t specified.

Troopers said Hovsepian is visually impaired and sometimes uses a cane.

“Cynthia is visually impaired and will sometimes use a cane for assistance,” troopers said in their bulletin on Wednesday.

On Aug. 3, Bare posted a message on his Facebook page, verified by NBC News, stating he was planning to celebrate his birthday in Alaska.

“My 50th state for my 50th!” he wrote. “Headed to Alaska in a few days!”

On Aug. 8, he posted an image of what he said was Alaska’s Denali National Park and Preserve, which is about 122 miles south-southwest of Fairbanks.

He suggested a leg of the trip might include a visit to Kodiak, the name of a city and island more than 600 miles south of Denali.

“I’m not going to get lost like I did 10 years ago in Australia and Katoomba Range,” Bare said on Facebook. “If a Kodiak gets me, I’ll consider that an honorable death.”