Alberta RCMP say there are no plans to scale back the search for missing six-year-old Darius Macdougall near the B.C.-Alberta border.
The search for Darius entered it sixth day Friday (Sept. 26) after he was last seen on Sunday (Sept. 21) about a kilometre from the Island Lake Campground, which is about four kilometres south of Crowsnest Pass. The search area, which is along the B.C.-Alberta border, is in a remote area
Darius had been on a walk with young family members when he went missing.
Search and Rescue Alberta provincial training manager Adam Kennedy said Friday that the search radius has expanded to five kilometres, with some searches expanded to 10 kilometres. He added that a total surface area of approximately seven square kilometres has been thoroughly searched multiple times.
Kennedy said the search will be ramped up over the weekend.
Kennedy said there has been no change is morale since Thursday.
"Honestly, the mood on the ground, everybody is still very optimistic. They are still searching and are not giving up."
In total, there are about 120 personnel from B.C. and Alberta in the search. Kennedy said that new resources from Saskatchewan will be joining.
He said all search and rescue people on the ground are volunteers, and they initially drew from teams in Alberta and B.C. since the search is so close to the border.
"People are getting exhausted as time goes on. Of course, we do need to reach further and further to pull resources. So as of right now, that is the eastern half of British Columbia, all of Alberta and then the western part of Saskatchewan."
Kennedy said there are about 68 volunteers on site Friday, comprised of conservation officers, Alberta sheriffs, fish and wildlife officers and other agencies.
Searchers have also consulted with two wilderness survivability physicians.
"The optimism is based on that statistical analysis and the consultation that was done with the leading physicians in the province the other day regarding survivability and the temperatures and terrain that we are seeing out here on the search ground."
Kennedy noted people can "go quite some time without food," and added "there is plenty of water in the area."
"It's all these considerations, along with the environmental factors, that look into the discussions with those physicians."
