Washington, Oct 21 (PTI) A 33-year-old Indian-American professor is missing since early last week after camping at Mount Rainer in Washington State, officials said.

Sam Dubal, an assistant professor of anthropology at the University of Washington, went for a hike on October 9 on the Mother Mountain Loop out of the Mowich Lake Trailhead, according to Mount Rainier National Park.

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Dubal was reported missing mid-day October 12.

Both the Mount Rainer National Park rangers and FBI have been pressed into service to find the missing professor.

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"Aggressive search ongoing for my little brother Sam Dubal. He's in a defined area but hard to find with treacherous terrain and weather. Gratitude to the brave searchers,” of Mount Rainier National Park Service, and FBI, said his sister Dena Debal in a tweet.

The Seattle Times reported that Dubal is about 5 feet 9 inches tall and 155 pounds, has black hair and a short black beard, and might be wearing a blue jacket. He joined University of Washington's Department of Anthropology as an assistant professor in June.

Poor weather conditions have kept the search and rescue team grounded for several days.

The primary search area, the park said, has been defined by the 17-mile Mother Mountain Loop trail, though teams have increasingly branched off to explore trails leading higher on Mount Rainier and river drainages leading off the mountain.

"Please God bring our beloved brother back to us. If you have SAR skills, please please volunteer with your local Mountain Rescue Association in Washington state. We love you dear Sam,” tweeted her another sister Veena Dubal, a Professor of Law at the University of California in Hastings.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)