An average of 717 people per 100,000 go missing in Humboldt County every year, giving it the highest per-capita missing persons rate in the state. By contrast, per 100,000, California sees 384 missing persons cases on an annual basis.

The eye-popping figures have earned Humboldt County the nickname, “the black hole.” They have even spawned unsubstantiated rumors about a possible serial killer wandering this part of the Emerald Triangle.

For missing children, the numbers in Humboldt are also high. The county is sixth in the state for missing minors.

"It's a bit curious as to why that might be," Bob Lowery, Vice President of National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, told the North Coast Journal. But he didn’t seem particularly worried. "It could be that the county sheriff and local police are very aggressive in accepting reports and getting them into the system. I'm not aware of any critically missing children in Humboldt County. If you dig into those number a little deeper, the reports are generally going to be runaway children."