‘The dog came back, she didn't’: Family of missing Cape Breton senior speaks out
It was a difficult weekend for Larry Gibbons. He hasn't seen his long-time partner since early Friday.
Gibbons says Susan Bain, 79, took their dog for a walk near their home in Middle River, N.S. He says when he came home from getting groceries in nearby Baddeck, she hadn't returned - but the dog eventually did.
"Our little dog came running by with a broken leash on," says Gibbons. "I was terrified. I knew she took rubber boots. She was just walking in about 11 degrees or so."
Gibbons contacted police. By the evening, a large search team was combing the area around Gold Brook Road.
"We had approximately 70 people on site that Friday night and then, the snow hit,” says Paul Vienneau, search manager for Cape Breton Search and Rescue.
Vienneau says searchers faced snow squalls, reduced visibility and temperatures well below freezing much of the weekend.
Bain’s home isn’t far from a major bridge washout along the Cabot Trail at Gold Brook. The section of highway was severely damaged during the rain and wind storm that lashed Cape Breton and Eastern Mainland Nova Scotia nearly two weeks ago.
"She wanted to go up and see the bridge, where the bridge was out,” says Vienneau. “And the dog came back, she didn't. We can't speculate on what happened."
Gibbons says his partner has severe rheumatoid arthritis and some memory loss.
"Police have told us that the odds are pretty low,” he says. "She was independent, and if she's not around anymore... I think this is probably one of the ways she would think is a good way to go. In the forest. She loved animals, and the forest."
With a rainfall warning issued for the area, RCMP suspended the search for Bain Monday. It's expected to resume Tuesday.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
'Anything to win': Trudeau says as Poilievre defends meeting protesters
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre of welcoming 'the support of conspiracy theorists and extremists,' after the Conservative leader was photographed meeting with protesters, which his office has defended.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
'One of the single most terrifying things ever': Ontario couple among passengers on sinking tour boat in Dominican Republic
A Toronto couple are speaking out about their 'extremely dangerous' experience on board a sinking tour boat in the Dominican Republic last week.
Boeing's financial woes continue, while families of crash victims urge U.S. to prosecute the company
Boeing said Wednesday that it lost US$355 million on falling revenue in the first quarter, another sign of the crisis gripping the aircraft manufacturer as it faces increasing scrutiny over the safety of its planes and accusations of shoddy work from a growing number of whistleblowers.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
It's no secret that spring can be a tumultuous time for Canadian weather, and as an unseasonably mild El Nino winter gives way to summer, there's bound to be a few swings in temperature that seem out of the ordinary. From Ontario to the Atlantic, though, this week is about to feel a little erratic.