Savannah Guthrie exited the Today show during Wednesday morning’s broadcast, according to a report.
Ninety minutes into the four-hour program, she quietly stepped out, with co-anchor Craig Melvin taking over, HELLO! reported.
Melvin addressed her absence, assuring the audience that the 54-year-old wouldn’t be gone for long.
“Savannah had to leave a little early. She’ll be right back tomorrow, though,” he reportedly told fans on the plaza. He did not offer an explanation for her departure.
NBC did not immediately respond to the Daily Beast’s request for comment.
A source told Page Six that Guthrie left the TV set “for some sort of appointment, and her exit had nothing to do with her mom.”
Guthrie is only a few weeks into her return to the network’s storied morning show. Her position was filled by Hoda Kotb after Guthrie took a two-month hiatus to help in efforts to find her mother, Nancy Guthrie, who was kidnapped earlier this year.
The 84-year-old was last seen on January 31 at her Tucson, Arizona, home. Footage from a doorbell camera showed a masked man with a gun at her doorstep.
Guthrie returned to her hosting duties after months of an unfruitful investigation into her mother’s disappearance, but has been open about her continued hope.
No suspects have been officially named or charged in connection with the investigation.
FBI Director Kash Patel appeared on Sean Hannity’s Hang Out podcast in an episode released on Tuesday, where he alleged that the Pima County Sheriff’s Department kept the FBI out of the loop for days.
Hannity said to Patel, 46, that sources told him “they were trying to keep you guys out.”
“They did,” the FBI chief replied. “The first 48 hours of anyone’s disappearance are the most critical.”
“What we, the FBI, do is say, ‘Hey, we’re here to help,’” Patel added. “What do you need? What can we do? And for four days, we were kept out of the investigation.”
Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos denied Patel’s claims, saying that an FBI Task Force member was present and collaborated with local law enforcement on the night that Guthrie disappeared.
“The FBI was promptly notified by both our department and the Guthrie family,” the sheriff said in a statement that acknowledged Patel’s comments. “While the FBI Director was not on scene, coordination with the Bureau began without delay.”
