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OPP, volunteers continuing search for Kaden seven weeks later

April 8, 2018   ·   0 Comments

By Brian Lockhart

The search for Kaden Young is now entering its seventh week.

Day after day, volunteers meet then go to assigned locations along the Grand River to search for the missing three year-old who was swept into the raging river on February 21.

While the number of volunteer searchers has fluctuated, there has been a daily presence on the river since the accident occurred including members of the public and OPP search teams.

Over the Easter weekend the number of searchers swelled as people volunteered their time to help in the effort.

In addition to people local to the area, volunteers have come from a wide area around the province who drive, car pool, and organize to come out and help in the search.

The area along the riverbank is still dangerous and there is a lot of ice in the river that is hampering the efforts. Volunteers use a variety of tools to pry debris apart along the banks of the river.

The Ontario Provincial Police have maintained a presence at the location since the accident occurred.

“We have officers onsite daily and we had the helicopter fly the river yesterday (April 2) to evaluate the ice conditions,” said OPP spokesperson Constable Paul Nancekivell. “We’re waiting for the ice conditions to improve then we are putting a dive team in there.”

The search is continuing from the Waldemar bridge down to Bellwood Lake – a distance of around ten kilometres.

“We’re taking it day by day. As soon as the ice conditions improve we’ll bring out dive team back in there and search specific areas they have identified,” Nancekivell said. “We’ve had dive team members in the helicopter because they can evaluate what the ice conditions are. The helicopter has a very strong camera and they can scan the area in a very detailed fashion. There are areas we would like to get into but the ice is still very thick. Some of the thinner ice has frozen over again which makes it very dangerous to go out on.”

A team of experienced civilian volunteer divers were going to assemble on Wednesday, April 4, to start a search of the river. The OPP stated they are not responsible for the safety of any volunteers who make an underwater search effort. OPP divers work under the auspices of the Ontario labour code and must adhere to labor safety standards.

Volunteers are determined to keep the search going until Kaden is found.

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