A female resident at a Pressley Ridge home who was missing for 17 hours over the weekend was found yesterday afternoon inside a walk-in kitchen pantry in the home.

Annette Huber, 18, was unharmed, and there was no explanation as to how she got inside the pantry. The doors in those facilities, generally, only lock from the outside, said Scott Finnell, president and CEO of Pressley Ridge.

Annette, who has lived at the Marshall-Shadeland home for two years, was reported missing Saturday evening.

According to her stepmother, Ann Huber, the teen had gotten ready for bed and was in her pajamas about 8 p.m. Saturday. When a male staff member returned to her room a short time later, Annette was missing. Police were called 30 minutes later, after staff members did their own search.

Annette was found in the pantry around 1:10 p.m. yesterday by the staff, said Mrs. Huber, who lives in Phoenixville, Chester County. She said she was told that the pantry was locked, but Mr. Finnell said that was "improbable."

"If a child was in there and wanted out, they would have knocked on the door and gotten out," he said. "If she was in there, she was hiding from us."

The Marshall Avenue facility is a regular house, Mr. Finnell said, with three bedrooms. Because of the relatively small size, he is unsure how it's possible that no one on the staff or police found Annette more quickly.

"She didn't have her meds all night, and nothing to eat or drink for 17 hours," Mrs. Huber said. "I was so terrified."

A Pittsburgh police detective said that because the girl had been found, there was no ongoing investigation.

A spokeswoman with the state Department of Public Welfare said that Pressley Ridge had not yet reported the situation but that there will be a full-scale investigation.

Mr. Finnell said that there will also be an internal investigation to determine what happened.

"If we find a weakness in our system, we're going to correct it," he said. "Clearly, the child disappeared, and that is never an acceptable situation. These are kids who require constant supervision."

Annette is schizophrenic and also takes medication for mood disorders, her stepmother said. Though she is 18, she functions as a young child, she added.

Annette has lived at Pressley Ridge for two years, and during that time has run away a number of times, Mrs. Huber said. In the past, she has been found hiding on a school bus and once lying face down on a grave, her stepmother said.

Annette is the only female living full-time at the facility, Mrs. Huber said. She shares the home with two teenage boys.

Pressley Ridge serves more than 4,000 children in seven states and two foreign countries, Mr. Finnell said.

"I think it's an exceptional program," he said. "If we figure out we have a hole in the system, we'll make sure we close that hole."

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