HALIFAX -- Searchers looking for a missing three-year-old Nova Scotia boy say they haven't found any new clues and will not be searching for the child this weekend.
Dylan Ehler was reported missing more than a week ago.
He was last seen in the yard behind his grandmother's house.
An exhaustive search that included putting a mannequin in the Salmon River, turned up nothing. Divers were back in the water again on Friday, searching a deep section they weren't able to access during an earlier search.
"There was a couple of areas of deep water that pooled there and conditions today were right by the dive team, the water was clear and they were able to get in there and give that a really good thorough search," said Truro Police Chief Dave MacNeil.
Police also cautioned people , however well-intentioned, not to engage in their own search for the missing toddler.
"Untrained and unqualified searchers pose a risk to themselves and to other first responders that may have to respond if they get in trouble, risk of injury or worse," MacNeil said. "The other piece is a lot of that property is private property and we don’t want people trespassing on other people’s land. We also have to be cognizant of COVID-19 restrictions of group gatherings and distance."
MacNeil says the searchers have been concentrating on the brook and the river because that is where Dylan's boots were found.
"Our investigation is an open, active missing persons investigation at this point in time, and there’s nothing to lead us to believe that there is foul play," MacNeil said. "That may change, it may not, as the investigation unwinds, but we’re continuing to keep that open investigation moving forward."
MacNeil also revealed the breadth of the search. Not only has it focused intensely on the waterways in and around Truro, searchers have flown out over Cobequid Bay.
"We’ve flown that bay right out to Economy and way out on the other side. The air search has been very extensive with the Department of Natural Resources helicopter," MacNeil said. "Our goal is to locate Dylan and bring some closure to the grieving family and to the community in general. This has been difficult for our officers, all of the search people involved. This has been difficult for the whole community."
