Search party grows as Lower Sackville man remains missing
There is a feeling of helplessness as the days pass following the disappearance of a Lower Sackville man.
Family and friends of Colin Beaton have been scouring the Inverness County coastline near where the 31-year-old went missing early Saturday morning.
A hooded sweatshirt belonging to Beaton was found Sunday near the ocean by the MLA for Inverness, Allan MacMaster.
MacMaster said his 31-yearold cousin from his father’s side of the family had arrived in Harbourview, near Port Hood, Friday evening for a family gathering.
The property is located near the intersection of Route 19 and Shore Road.
“He was in a vulnerable state and the family is concerned that he may even be trying to hide from people,” MacMaster said Wednesday. “He’s lost his glasses so he’s not able to see very well.”
Beaton was carrying a cellphone although family members say the battery has probably depleted since his disappearance.
Authorities picked up a signal for Beaton’s phone on the mainland. MacMaster said he believes the transmission could have been carried across the water from Inverness County.
The family is not ruling out the possibility that Beaton may have hitchhiked.
“It’s very common for my phone bill to show up that I was in (Prince Edward Island) making a phone call because a signal bounced off the water and hit a tower there,” MacMaster said.
“We kind of have a feeling that he’s not that far away, but we don’t know for sure. We don’t want to let our feelings about it affect how he would be searched for.”
MacMaster said a ground team, helicopter and a canine unit canvassed the area for Beaton on the day following his disappearance. On Monday, a dive team explored the coastline where his sweatshirt was found, while on Tuesday six volunteer pilots from Debert, N.S., conducted an aerial search. An ATV team also explored areas along the Trans-Canada trail.
MacMaster issued a call for help on social media late Tuesday. He has since recruited about 50 volunteers should another ground search be organized.
“You can’t just go out and do it yourself,” he said. “The family has respected that and they’ve done some searching but it’s in an area very close to the shore. The challenge for the family is not going out and searching for him.”
In the event that a second search is called, MacMaster said volunteers would be paired with trained professionals.
At the request of RCMP, Beaton’s family has agreed to stay out of the woods to avoid any potential contamination by a search party. Police also advise that there is a risk of searchers becoming lost in the woods themselves.
MacMaster said the area where his cousin went missing is a mix of residential homes and country lanes leading down to the shoreline.
A large portion of the rural area is also heavily wooded.
“It’s bounded by the ocean on one side, and like a lot of Cape Breton Island, once you’re on shore you’ve got lots of hills and little valleys and the further inland you go the higher the elevation becomes.”
MacMaster is asking the public to study Beaton’s photo and keep their eyes peeled should they cross his path. He encourages anyone who has spotted his cousin to call RCMP right away.
Area residents are also asked to check any buildings on their properties in the event Beaton may be hiding or looking for food or water.
“The sooner they contact them the better chance they can use the information to help find Colin,” he said.
RCMP Cpl. Jennifer Clarke said Wednesday afternoon that efforts were underway to arrange a search vessel to once again survey the area.
Police resources were also being dedicated to following up on a fair number of tips that have come forward.
Beaton was last seen leaving a family-owned property in Harbourview around 2 a.m. Saturday. He was wearing jeans and rubber boots.
Family members described the missing man as five-foot-10, 160 pounds with red hair.
Anyone with information regarding Beaton’s whereabouts is asked to call the Inverness RCMP at 902-258-2213, or anonymously through Cape Breton Crime Stoppers at 1-800222-TIPS or online crimestoppers.ns.ca.