Landfill site at heart of Corrie search will not be fillled in

The family of missing Fife airman Corrie McKeague has won a campaign to prevent a landfill site at the centre of the search from being filled in.

Suffolk Constabulary said the search area at the site in Milton, Cambridgeshire, would not be filled in until the situation had been reviewed.

In addition, the force said incinerated waste would now be examined by forensic experts.

The move was welcomed by Corrie’s mother Nicola Urquhart, of Dunfermline.

Ms Urquhart, 48, said: “I am so pleased that Suffolk Police have heard our voices and listened. They have heard our concerns at the landfill being handed back and being filled in and have now said although handed back, it will not be touched and will remain in the same condition until after the review by an independent force.”

Ms Urquhart had previously considered seeking an injunction to prevent the search “cell” at the site from being filled in.

Police called off the operation at the landfill after spending 20 weeks fruitlessly sifting through waste at an area where Corrie’s body is believed to have been dumped.

After police said they had scoured the whole area which could contain traces of Corrie, thousands signed a petition to prevent the cavity from being filled in.

Corrie’s father, Martin McKeague, was photographed at the landfill site near Cambridge with his motorhome blocking the entrance.

Police said 23-year-old Corrie, who was based at Honington in Suffolk, had a history of falling asleep in unusual places, including in bins.