The search continues for two men, one from Kelowna, the other from Revelstoke, after the pair went missing more than two weeks ago.
Kelowna resident Allan Ellsworth, 53, was last seen July 31 in the Trout Lake area in the West Kootenay.
Revelstoke resident Jared Szabo, 29, was last seen Aug. 1 in the nearby community of Beaton. He was enjoying time at his cabin before being reported missing.
Police did recover Szabo’s truck from Fish River on Aug.10 but Szabo was not inside.
Police are not sure if the two men were together at the time of their disappearance and are still trying to determine a possible connection.
Police have ruled out foul play in the disappearances.
Although the official search has been scaled back, Cpl. Dan Moskaluk said police, search and rescue teams, family and friends are still scouring the area. Periodic aerial searches are also being conducted by RCMP air services.
Szabo’s emotional aunt told Global News Thursday morning with no success in the search so far, the family hopes to hire a well-known Idaho couple that uses a sonar-equipped boat to scour waters in search of missing people.
A GoFundMe campaign has now been launched with a goal of raising $25,000 to help cover the costs of hiring the private company.
Click here to access it.
So far, $10,000 has been collected.