🚨 Search Update – Crowsnest Pass, Alberta: Missing Boy Darius Macdougall, 6
Authorities said Sunday that six-year-old Darius Macdougall, who disappeared a week ago during a family walk in the Crowsnest Pass area of southwest Alberta, has not yet been found.
At an afternoon briefing, RCMP Cpl. Gina Slaney said investigators met with Darius’s family to discuss survivability in light of the rugged terrain, prolonged exposure to the elements, and the time elapsed since he went missing. Based on those factors, officials now estimate the chance of survival at under five per cent. Slaney noted that search tactics are being adjusted but operations continue.
📌 Key Points from Sunday’s Update
- Tactics changing: Search leaders are shifting strategies as the operation enters its second week.
- Air & tech redeployed: Previously engaged air assets are being used in new ways, including infrared re-scans of earlier areas.
- Manpower on scene: Around 200 personnel remain active, including roughly 100 SAR Alberta volunteers, plus surface and underwater teams re-checking priority zones.
- Decision drivers: The review weighed Darius’s condition at the time he went missing, the local landscape, weather impacts, and a large statistical analysis of comparable cases—teams examined thousands of data points from similar searches.
- Autism-informed approach: Because Darius is autistic, crews are avoiding loud noises that could push him away and are instead using familiar stimuli (e.g., flashing lights and his favourite song) in an effort to draw him out.
- Still active: RCMP emphasize the search is ongoing, with specialists continually reassessing how resources are deployed.
📞 How to Help
Authorities ask the public not to enter the search area. If you have credible information that could assist, please contact the Alberta RCMP or your local police immediately. Call 9-1-1 for urgent sightings.
🔗 Source
Global News – Sunday update on survivability and search tactics
👉 What You Can Do
Please share this update respectfully to help maintain awareness while trained teams continue their work on the ground and in the air.
🌐 Visit CanadaMissing.ca for more missing person cases across Canada.
