Nearly seven months after her disappearance, the search has officially resumed for a missing 39-year-old woman who disappeared while hiking in Sooke in December.
An extensive search was launched to find Melissa McDevitt, who was reported missing on December 10, 2022, but it was proven unsuccessful and eventually suspended.
However, a dedicated group of backcountry hikers discovered the watch McDevitt was wearing at the time she disappeared. The watch recorded her hiking route and the information was saved on an app.
The new information prompted Sooke RCMP and the Juan de Fuca Search and Rescue teams to begin a refined search in an area first examined in December.
Dozens of police and search and rescue members gathered Saturday morning near the Sooke Potholes to pick the search back up.
“It’s literally like finding a needle in a haystack, but at this point this is new information and we are back out again today,” said Cpl. Joe Holmes with the Sooke RCMP.
80 searchers are on the ground along with a canine team.
“This search came out of dogged determination and persistence of several community members who have been out every week since the search was suspended,” said Paul Berry, with Comox Valley Search and Rescue.
McDevitt’s parents, Tom and Maggie, are in Virginia and unable to join the search for their daughter.
Crews from across Vancouver Island plan to be on the ground the entire weekend.
“Every single searcher to do this work left with the intent of returning Melissa home to her family,” said Berry.