She believes that Morgan was murdered by a serial killer but police insist that Hannah's disappearance is strictly a missing persons case at this stage

Missing student Hannah Graham is one of five young women to have disappeared from the Charlottesville area in the past five years within a few minutes' drive of the same Route 29 highway, it emerged on Wednesday.

As the FBI, police and volunteers continue their desperate search for the 18-year-old and her parents said they fear 'foul play', the mother of one of the young women who vanished said the worry of not knowing is the hardest part to bear.

Gil Harrington suffered months of despair after her 20-year-old daughter Morgan disappeared from UVA in October 2009 while attending a rock concert.

Her body was not recovered until three months later, hidden at a remote farm. She had been raped before she was murdered.

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Missing on Route 29: Five women have gone missing in and around Charlottesville, Virginia, just a few minutes' drive from the same highway in the last five years. The body of just one has been found so far

Tragedy: Morgan Harrington, 20 (left), vanished from UVA's John Paul Jones Arena while attending a Metallica concert in October 2009. Alexis Murphy, 17 (right), was last seen at a gas station in Lovingston in August 2013

Mystery: DaShad Laquinn Smith, 19 (left), has not been seen since November 2012. Samantha Ann Clarke, 19 (right) vanished after leaving her home in Orange in September 2010

Mrs Harrington told MailOnline: 'The missing time is the hardest. You have no answers and you fill in the blanks in a horrible way.

'It's much worse having a missing daughter than knowing she is dead. There are rituals for death. There are no cards for "sorry about your missing child". You go from hope to despair. It's hideous.

'My heart goes out to Hannah's family.'

Mrs Harrington, 57, from Roanake added: 'I hope and pray that Hannah is somewhere and is recoverable and will come walking through the door with a sheepish look on her face any moment now.

'That's my hope. But my logic tells me that is unlikely to happen. I'm really holding out hope that we can have a good outcome.'

Police have been quick to point out that there is no substantive connection yet between the disappearance of Morgan Harrington and are treating it as a 'missing persons inquiry'.

But Hannah's parents, John and Susan Graham, released a statement on Wednesday saying they feared their daughter's death was the result of 'foul play' because 'it is totally out of character for us not to have heard from her'.

Hannah is one of five young women who have disappeared from Charlottesville and the surrounding area in past five years along the Route 29 corridor. Only one of the cases has been solved and the whereabouts of four, including Hannah, remains unknown.

Morgan Harrington, 20, vanished from UVA's John Paul Jones Arena while attending a Metallica concert in October 2009. Her remains were discovered three months later but her killer is still at large.

Samantha Ann Clarke, 19, went missing after leaving her home in nearby Orange County in September 2010. Her body has not been found.

Desperate: Hannah Graham was last seen in the early hours of Saturday morning after going to a party

Hunt: Police, FBI and volunteers have been searching all over Charlottesville for Hannah for four days

Reconstruction: Police are trying to piece together Hannah's last movements. She was 'clearly intoxicated' said police and sent a friend a text saying that she was lost

Tips: Police and volunteers, above, are scouring the area and have received around 100 tips related to the case

Hope: Hannah's parents, Susan and john, and brother James, are clinging on to hope they will find her alive. But they have no said they do fear the worst and 'foul play'

DaShad Laquinn Smith, 19, disappeared in Charlottesville in November 2012. Her whereabouts remain a mystery.

Alexis Murphy, 17, disappeared after leaving her home in Shipman, Virginia, in August 2013. This May, Randolph Taylor, 48, was convicted of her abduction and murder in January although her body has never been found.

Another two young women, Alicia Showalter Reynolds, 25, and Anne Carolyn McDaniel, 20, were abducted and murdered in 1996 along the same corridor.

Mrs Harrington has launched a charity in her daughter's honor called Help Save The Next Girl to educate young women of the dangers of predatory men. She has previously said that a serial killer was responsible for Morgan's murder.

Mrs Harrington said: 'My own daughter was abducted in the area that Hannah went missing. Morgan was abducted and murdered in Charlottesville in 2009. We know that the person involved with Morgan's case was a serial offender. We know that because he was involved with a previous abduction and rape in 2005.'

She refused to elaborate or speculate further.

A huge manhunt was launched on Sunday for Hannah when family or friends had not heard from her. She is described as 5-ft 11 in tall, with blue eyes, light brown hair and freckles, was last seen in the early hours of Saturday morning wearing black slacks and a gold and black crop top.

A talented skier Hannah was a member of the university ski club, known as VASST.

CCTV images of her leaving her rented flat at the Grand Marc apartments at about 9.30pm have been issued by police.

On her way out: CCTV images of her leaving her rented flat at the Grand Marc apartments at about 9.30 pm have been released by police

Approach: The footage released by Charlottesville police shows Hannah (bottom left) walking by the doors of McGrady's Irish pub at around 12.46am on Saturday

Haunting: At today's press conference, Charlottesville police released footage of the eerie Shell station forecourt that Hannah Graham ran past just before 1am on Saturday morning

The British-born second-year student went to a party with ski club friends at the Camden Plaza Apartments at the heart of Charlottesville student area.

Detectives say she had 'quite a lot to drink' but declined offers from a friend to walk her home and left the party on her own at about midnight.

She wandered around the popular Wertland Square and was spotted at the junction of Wertland St and 14th Street at 12.15am.

Hannah then took the unusual decision to walk out of town and past the McGrady's Irish pub and was caught stumbling outside on the bar's surveillance equipment.

Throughout the evening Hannah texted her friends with her last message sent about 1.30am saying she was lost.

But on Wednesday, it emerged that new surveillance video showed Hannah walking in the opposite direction away from where she told her friends she was lost.

The footage, from outside a Shell gas station less than half a mile from the bar, shows the 18-year-old walking by herself before she breaks into a run. Police have said that no one is seen to be following her on the tape.

Police also said on Wednesday that five minutes later a witness saw Hannah walking towards the Charlottesville downtown mall, which is at least half-a-mile from the UVA campus, where friends were waiting at a party for her. She was again caught on camera.

Authorities have said they do not know why she texted her friends 20 minutes later to say she was lost near to the UVA campus - an area she knows very well - and said the new footage will change the whole focus of their search for Hannah.

Hannah parents raced down to Charlottesville from their home in Washington DC after learning of their daughter's disappearance.

The couple, and Hannah's older brother James, said they are 'heartbroken' but hopeful she will be found.

'Hannah is beyond precious to us, and we are devastated by her disappearance. It is totally out of character for us not to have heard from her, and we fear foul play.

'We are in constant contact with the Charlottesville Police Department (CPD) and the University of Virginia.

Hope: Gil Harrington, the mother of murdered Morgan Harrington, told MailOnline: 'I hope and pray that Hannah is somewhere and will come walking through the door with a sheepish look on her face any moment now. But my logic tells me that is unlikely to happen'

'We have learned has received many helpful leads from the leads from the public. We are very grateful for all the information already provided and urge members of the public to continue to call the dedicated tip line, with anything at all, however small it seems.

'We would also like to recognize the many messages of support we have received from Hannah’s friends at UVA, her friends from high school, band and soft ball team, as well as our neighbours, friends and work colleagues, too many to count.

'Although we are British, Hannah has lived in Virginia since she was five. This is her home and we have always felt welcome here.

'We are so grateful for everyone involved in the search for Hannah. Like you, we will not rest until we find her and she comes home.'

Police Chief Tim Longo told a press conference on Wednesday that he was pursuing 'an aggressive investigation' to find Hannah and he described her disappearance as every parent's worst nightmare.

He said he had met with Mr and Mrs Graham today and was clearly moved by their plight.

He said: 'You can only imagine. As a parent and as a husband you can imagine what they are going through these past several days.

'Our focus is to find their daughter and by the grace of God return her to their care.'

Chief Longo said investigators had received over 100 calls to the dedicated Hannah Graham tip line and he urged anyone who ‘may have seen or heard anything on the Friday night and Saturday night’ to call.

He said although 'straight A' student Hannah is under the legal age for drinking she should not be judged for being drunk.

Devastated: Chief Tim Longo described that he had met Hannah's parents and said: 'You can only imagine. As a parent and as a husband you can imagine what they are going through these past several days'

Chief Longo said: 'We had reason to believe she was under the influence of alcohol. I think it’s extremely important to point something out.

'Folks have gone very quickly to this issue and attacked the character of this young lady.

'The reason that information came out as from an investigative stand point, was because it suggests the fact that she was vulnerable. That she may not have been in a position to protect herself. And so we thought it important to get that information out publicly.

'It also speaks to the fact that not only was she vulnerable that she may not have been in a position to make good decisions. I find it unfortunate that some people are latching on to that and despoiling this young lady’s character.'

Chief Longo said investigators had obtained video footage from across the city and had also seized electronic equipment from Hannah’s apartment.

A statement, issued by the university, said: 'Those of us who know and love Hannah know that she would not disappear without contacting family or friends. She is highly responsible and organized.'

Mr Graham, who is originally from Newcastle, in the UK, works for NGO linked to the World Bank.

The couple live in a $500,000 house in a sought-after suburb of the capital.

On Tuesday night Hannah’s friends mounted a vigil for the missing student and painted a mural on a bridge close to the university demanding; 'Bring Hannah Home'.