Searchers will be back in the woods around a rural Pictou County home this weekend in the search for two missing siblings who were last seen four weeks ago.
Lilly and Jack Sullivan — aged six and four — were reported missing from their home on Gairloch Road in Lansdowne Station, N.S., on May 2.
In a Friday news release, RCMP said ground search efforts are planned for Saturday and will focus on areas around Gairloch Road, as well as the nearby pipeline trail, where a boot print was previously located.
“We continue to ask that the public avoid the search area to allow trained searchers to do their work,” RCMP said.
“Any future searches will be determined based on the course of the investigation.”
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The extensive search for the children has involved more than 160 searchers over multiple days — involving large-scale ground and air operations, as well as the use of an underwater recovery team.
The area around the children’s home is heavily wooded, with terrain made difficult by damage from Hurricane Fiona.
RCMP announced on May 7 that they were scaling back their efforts, saying there was little chance the children were alive. Additional searches since then have zoned in on specific areas.
On Wednesday, police said they’ve confirmed the two children were seen in public with family members on the afternoon of May 1, based on video evidence and eyewitness accounts.
RCMP said investigators have collected hours of video from the areas surrounding Lansdowne Station, and are still looking for more footage. They have also received more than 355 tips and interviewed in excess of 50 people.
Police have maintained there is no evidence of abduction.
The children’s stepfather, Daniel Martell, told Global News this week that he’s taken a polygraph test and is focused entirely on finding Lilly and Jack.
“You don’t have to trust my word, but I’m the only one doing media for Jack and Lilly — trying to keep this story alive and get them found,” he said.
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