Deputies still investigating missing Atkins woman

Sheriff's deputies still haven't determined whether a March 14 report of a vehicle in the Cedar River is connected to the case of a missing Atkins woman.

Nancy B. Collins, owner of Collins Corner Pub & Eatery in Atkins, was reported missing the same day a motorist on Blairs Ferry Road said she saw a vehicle roll into the river near Palo.

Deputies have found what could be tire tracks, but the river is still too swollen for them to look for the vehicle, Linn County Sheriff Brian Gardner said.

“The water levels have dropped, but they have not dropped to the level where we would institute a search,” Gardner said.

Collins, 66, shopped in northeast Cedar Rapids regularly and usually drove through Palo, Gardner said. “It's not uncommon for her to drive that way,” he said.

Attempts to contact the Collins family were not successful.