UPDATED: Search on hold for young person lost in the floods in West Hants
The search for a young person who has been missing since flash flooding devastated West Hants on Saturday, July 22 has been temporarily halted.
At a press conference in Windsor on Monday, RCMP officials said they need to hold off on the search in order to allow for deep water in the secondary search area to drain.
“Despite an extensive search to date, we’ve unfortunately been unable to locate the missing youth,” said Supt. Sean Auld, a support services officer for the Nova Scotia RCMP.
Auld noted that as the searchers continued their work on the weekend, they encountered deep pockets of water, in some places eight to 10 feet deep, in the secondary search zone.
“These pockets of water have low visibility and unpredictable terrain,” said Auld.
“As a result, a search of the ponds by the searchers would put them at risk of being injured and we’ve made the difficult decision to temporarily suspend our operations at this time,” he said.
The RCMP said it’s anticipated the pockets of water will drain on their own in the next two to three days.
Cpl. Chris Marshall, a public information officer with the RCMP, elaborated on the concerns.
“So basically, the way the pockets are, in some areas you could have a couple inches of water and the very next step you’re going to take is eight feet straight down. So that’s the issue,” said Marshall.
“The murkiness of the water makes it just about impossible to see what it is they’re doing below the immediate surface of the water.”
Additionally, there is floodwater debris and farm fencing in the area, further adding to the safety risk.
Three other people were lost in the floods: Nick Holland, 52 and two six-year olds Colton Sisco and Natalie Harnish. Police announced on July 24 and 25 that their remains were found. The fourth missing person is a youth between the ages of 12 and 18. The police are not releasing their identity out of respect for the family.
The primary search area in Brooklyn, which had “a lake worth of water” that had to be pumped out, was exhausted on July 27 and search efforts were directed to an adjacent secondary site.
RCMP officials said about 85 per cent of the secondary site has been drained and searched.
“We won’t leave any stone unturned in those high probability areas, just for our own conscience,” said Cpl. Matt Tucker, acting West Hants District RCMP commander.
Tucker said should the youth not be located in the secondary search area, the team will re-evaluate next steps.
On July 30, the search of the coastline from Halls Harbour, in Kings County, to Brooklyn, and Maitland, in East Hants, to Brooklyn concluded.
About 65 people — first responders and search and rescue volunteers — have been searching every day and have covered more than 495 acres of land, 104 square kilometres of watershed and tidal waters as well as 417 square kilometres of shoreline from the air.
“I can tell you that the crews who’ve been involved in the search over the last nine days remain committed today, as they did on the first day of the search,” Auld said at the July 31 press conference.
“The goal remains to bring home the missing youth to their family. And as soon as it’s safe to do so, the searchers will return to that task.”
West Hants Mayor Abraham Zebian thanked the tireless efforts of the volunteers and said the community is grieving for the families.
“It’s a hard day here in West Hants,” said Zebian. “We have a gap in our family now and they’ll never be forgotten; (they will be) always remembered and always loved.”
A funeral service for one of the six-year-olds, Natalie, is this afternoon, while the funeral for her friend, Colton, is Tuesday. Both children loved bright colours, and attendees are asked to wear vibrant colours to honour them. Colton was also a fan of superheroes, so his parents are asking attendees consider wearing something fun as his mother says he would’ve loved that.
Did you know?
The search for the missing people in West Hants was led by the Nova Scotia Ground Search and Rescue Association, with personnel from West Hants, Valley, Halifax, Colchester, East Hants, Eastern Shore, Sheet Harbour, Clare, Digby, Strait Area, Pictou, Musquodoboit, and Annapolis County. The on-water search has been supported by Brooklyn Fire Department and numerous other fire departments. Also engaged throughout the search have been the Department of Natural Resources and Renewables, Nova Scotia Public Safety and Field Communications, Emergency Health Services, Civilian Air Search and Rescue Association, Office of Fire Marshall Critical Incident Stress Management Team, the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre, RCMP Police Dog Services, RCMP Air Services, West Hants District RCMP, civilian contractors, and other partners.
