A Quebec toddler was found alive after a 4-day search. It's a rare outcome, police say
CBC
In his 34 years volunteering in the search for missing people in Quebec, Guy Lapointe has only witnessed four cases where a child was found alive after 72 hours.
On Wednesday, a three-year-old Montreal girl defied the odds. She was found safe in Ontario after an intensive four-day search that included up to 200 officers and trained volunteers, a helicopter and ATVs.
"We had hope, but we were starting to think that she wouldn't be alive anymore," said Lapointe, the president of the Quebec Search and Rescue Volunteer Association. "We're still on a cloud."
He noted search and rescues that last this long are "rare."
Over his three-decade-long career with the Sûreté du Québec (SQ), Capt. Benoît Richard said this was likely the first time he had seen a child found alive after the 72-hour mark.
"The more [time] goes and the more it gets difficult for us to find them," he said.
One of the reasons those initial hours are so critical, he said, is the lack of food or water.
Bill Dickson, Ontario Provincial Police spokesperson, echoed that sentiment, highlighting that the longer the search goes on, the higher the chance of a tragic outcome.
"It had the best ending we could hope for," he said.
The little girl had last been seen at her residence in Montreal's LaSalle borough Sunday morning and her mother reported her missing a few hours later at a store in Coteau-du-Lac, about 50 kilometres west of Montreal.
Her mother was arrested on Monday and charged with child abandonment. She's scheduled to appear again in court on Friday.
Lapointe, a former RCMP officer, believes social media played a decisive role in this particular rescue.
"Without all the information from the public, it would have been very hard. We would still be there and her chance to be alive would be reduced," he said.
An Amber Alert wasn't issued in this case, and Lapointe believes that was the right call. He argues the population was advised "very fast" and says police "did exactly the right thing."
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