Virginia mom Lauren Cook, 3 kids missing for over a week

A Virginia mother and her three young children have been missing for more than a week — but frantic search efforts were only launched after the first few crucial days, police said.

Lauren Cook, 30, and her kids — 7-year-old Benjamin, 5-year-old Hannah and 2-year-old Elijah — vanished without a trace Sept. 5 after failing to show up at a family member’s home, according to Franklin County police.

Loved ones spent several days unsuccessfully trying to contact Cook before finally turning to the police for help.

Deputies are still trying to piece together the case and are unsure whether the foursome could be in danger.

Cook is married and lives with her husband, who shares custody of the three kids, police said.

“A lot of times you see these situations where a parent loses custody and takes the kids and runs away. This doesn’t seem to be like that.,” Sgt. Megan Huston, the department’s public information officer, told The Post.

Police are not sure whether the couple could be embroiled in some type of dispute that could have pushed Cook to flee.

There are also no records in Franklin County of any domestic violence between the pair or any 911 calls for their home.

“But they’re not originally from here so I can’t say if something has or has not happened elsewhere, I’m not privy to that information,” Huston said.

“It’s a complex situation that we have limited details on.”

Because the search for the missing family was delayed, police said it’s not completely clear where they were last spotted.

They could be outside the state by now, possibly traveling in a blue 2013 Chrysler van with Virginia tags.

The perplexing case has drawn a large community response, with various children’s advocacy groups across the state sharing the family’s images in hopes of tracking them down.