Missing Kamloops woman Shannon White with her dog.
Image Credit: FACEBOOK
November 22, 2021 - 5:24 PM
It's been three weeks since a Kamloops woman went missing and friends, family and members of the community continue to search for clues of her whereabouts.
Shannon White, 32, has been missing since Nov. 1, when she left her home in Kamloops's Lower Sahali neighbourhood at approximately 8 a.m. She didn't arrive at her job at Kamloops Hyundai on Notre Dame Drive as expected. The next day her Jeep was found parked on Nicola Street near 3 Avenue.
Her vehicle was observed travelling west on the Trans-Canada Highway, shortly after she was supposed to have arrived at work. On the same day, her Jeep also travelled northbound on the Yellowhead Highway, past Rayleigh, before returning south, passing Rayleigh about 45 minutes later.
On Sunday, Nov. 22, several people gathered to conduct two searches organized by some of Shannon’s closest friends, with one search happening in the morning and one in the afternoon.
READ MORE: Heather Shtuka knows too well the urgency for family, friends of missing Kamloops woman
“There were probably between 30 and 40 searchers gathered there,” one of the searchers, Jennifer Dolson, said. “Shannon’s dad and her dog Buddy were greeting everyone. Her dad thanked me and we had an emotional hug. We convoyed out in vehicles and stopped repeatedly to search on foot any places we thought could be relevant.”
While the areas of the search have not been shared yet, she said the weather was not in their favour, with fog and snow at the higher elevations.
“The mood was very sombre and it was made clear when we were getting our instructions that we were on a recovery mission,” Dolson said. “At the same time it was heartening that so many people were showing up to help. There was a mixture of emotions.”
She has never met Shannon but that does not affect the importance of helping to find her.
“This could be anyone, a mother, daughter or sister,” Dolson said. “This is our community and everyone should be looked for, everyone should come home to their family. No parent should go to bed at night wondering where their child is.”
She is hoping others will donate some time and effort into helping find White by sharing social media posts and putting flyers on their cars or joining future searches. She hopes to take part in the search again.
“The more people search the smaller the search area becomes,” Dolson said. “If something bad happens, the community can make a big difference by working together. It is emotional to see people coming together and pushing forward. Every little bit helps.”
Spokesperson for the family and event organizer, Angela Hulsman, declined to comment on the search locations.
Kamloops Search and Rescue said the search has been suspended while RCMP investigates further leads, in a comment that was posted on the rescue organization's Facebook page at 7:30a.m., Nov. 23.
"Over 11 days, over 200 responding members from 6 teams put in over 3000 hours and searched over 800 kms by foot," it said. "That's the equivalent of 18 months of full-time work, and walking to Vancouver and back from Kamloops."
— This article was updated to include comment by Kamloops Search and Rescue at 12:39 p.m. on November 23, 2021
To contact a reporter for this story, email Shannon Ainslie or call 250-819-6089 or email the editor. You can also submit photos, videos or news tips to the newsroom and be entered to win a monthly prize draw.
We welcome your comments and opinions on our stories but play nice. We won't censor or delete comments unless they contain off-topic statements or links, unnecessary vulgarity, false facts, spam or obviously fake profiles. If you have any concerns about what you see in comments, email the editor in the link above.
News from © iNFOnews, 2021