Covington mother Tamia Taylor still missing after Memphis riverboat cruise

The search is underway for a Covington woman missing out of Memphis.

According to a missing person report issued on Sunday, Tamia Taylor went missing after a riverboat cruise on Saturday.

“I’m hurting as a mother, her friends is hurting, her family is hurting, her brother is hurting, her children are hurting,” Tamia’s mother, Debra Taylor, told Action News 5 after the family conducted its own search for her at Memphis Riverboats Monday.

Tamia, who has two children, was part of Covington’s Class of 2020. Saturday night’s riverboat cruise was part of her 21st birthday celebration. It is believed she left her phone behind while she went to use the bathroom and the individuals with whom she attended the cruise waited for her at the door, then left.

Tamia hasn’t been seen since.

”She was with them, and then she had to go to the bathroom, she put her phone down on the table and they picked the phone up and proceeded to wait for her at the door. I don’t know what made them leave, but they left,” Debra said.

Memphis Riverboats released a statement Monday expressing sympathy to Tamia’s family and stating they did not believe she went overboard.

“We can confirm from video footage circling around that she was last seen on the boat as the boat was pulling into the Harbor, where we dock our boats. We have no reason to believe she could have gone overboard and we will be respecting [Memphis Police Department] as they conduct their investigation.”

Tamia is 5’7″ tall, weighs approximately 125 pounds, and was last seen wearing a black jacket, beige shirt, white shorts, orange socks, and white shoes. Anyone with information is urged to contact Memphis Police at 901-545-2677.

Debra said she and her family would not give up the search for her daughter.

“You got to have hope. Don’t never lose hope,” she said. “Anybody that knows anything, hear anything, please just give us whatever information. Even if you think it’s not important, it may be more important than you think.

“Whether I get her back alive or I have to put her in the ground, God is in control.”