Have You Seen The 'Woman in Black?'

A mysterious ”woman in black,” who became a social media phenomenon after being spotted along busy highways across the Southeast, has reportedly reached her destination in Winchester, Virginia.

Around 9 p.m. Tuesday, officers were called to the 2400 block of Valley Avenue in Winchester for crowd control after nearly 50 people gathered to catch a glimpse of the “Woman in Black,” the police department said in a press release.

“For her safety and the safety of others, officers took her to an undisclosed location and provided her with food and shelter,” the statement reads.

Raymond Poles identified himself to Reuters as the woman’s brother Tuesday. Elizabeth Poles, the “Woman in Black,” is reportedly a 56-year-old U.S. Army veteran and mother of two from Motts, Alabama.

Poles told Reuters his sister had been receiving treatment at Veterans Affairs hospitals to cope with the deaths of her husband in 2008 and her father in 2009. Poles, who told Reuters his sister is a “loving, kind-hearted woman,” said she would occasionally vanish for months at a time.

A Facebook page dedicated to Poles’ more than 500-mile journey urges those who see her to be kind. The page has garnered more than 68,000 likes since the site’s creation July 18. Followers have posted spottings in Georgia, Kentucky, Ohio, Tennessee and West Virginia as they search for answers to the site’s titular question: “Where is the mysterious Woman in Black?”

“If you meet this woman, please, offer her a drink, a meal, whatever it may be you feel she needs. Be hospitable. Be kind. And try to remember to carry those qualities not only to this mysterious woman, but to everyone,” the Facebook page reads.

Photo: Facebook