HILLSBORO, N.D. — Authorities are investigating after a father and daughter went missing following a fire that burned down their home near Hillsboro early Thursday morning, April 9.
About 3 a.m. a sheriff's deputy spotted a fire at a house about 3 1/2 miles east of Hillsboro, according to the Traill County Sheriff's Office. Little remained of the house as the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation arrived on scene later in the day.
Traill County Sheriff Steve Hunt said a man who lived at the house is now missing. Crews searched through the smoldering rubble with the aid of an excavator but as of Friday at noon had not located any bodies and there were no new updates.
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A family member identified the missing man as 35-year-old Adam Gettel and said his nearly 2-year-old daughter is also missing.
While Gettel's car was by the house, the family member said it was in need of repair and that Gettel was using a different vehicle.
Police and family members have made repeated attempts to contact Gettel but have not been successful.
Hillsboro is about 40 miles north of Fargo.
In 2017, Gettel was the focus of a WDAY feature about an orphaned goose that grew so attached to him, it'd fly beside his pickup as he drove to work. Watch a video of that feature below.
