Searchers hunt for mushroom picker, 73
RCMP and search teams on the ground and in the air are looking for a 73-yearold Nanaimo woman who did not return from an afternoon of mushroom picking on Sunday.
A friend told police that Bertha Hanson left home at around noon on Sunday, driving her blue 2014 Silverado. The friend contacted Nanaimo RCMP Monday morning when she realized Hanson had not returned.
Hanson’s vehicle has been found near the intersection of Timberlands Road and Ninatti Road, approximately five kilometres west of the Nanaimo Airport.
Ladysmith RCMP, search and rescue volunteers, a canine team and an RCMP helicopter are searching the area.
Police do not have a description of Hanson’s clothing, but have released a recent photo of her.
Hanson often takes her camera mushroom picking and carries it in a red Molson Canadian cooler bag. She has no known medical conditions, but is likely not dressed for an extended stay outdoors, police said.
Anyone who sees Hanson should call 911 immediately.
Meanwhile, the official search for a mushroom picker in northwestern British Columbia has been called off.
Fifty-three-year-old Frances Brown was reported missing nine days ago in a rugged area of the Bulkley Valley, southwest of Moricetown.
As many as 50 search and rescue team members from across the province joined local responders, police and helicopter crews in one of the largest searches conducted in more than a decade in northern B.C.
Several clues, including a campfire, suggested Brown spent several nights in the bush, but by mid-week, no further signs were found.
The search was complicated by heavy rain and snow and officials called it off late Saturday.
RCMP said if more concrete evidence is spotted, the search may resume.