Second search for missing B.C. hiker Melissa McDevitt suspended

The second search for missing hiker Melissa McDevitt has been suspended after not finding her over the weekend.

BC RCMP Island District said despite deploying more than 80 searchers from 11 different search and rescue agencies, “nothing of obvious significance was located.”

“We would like to acknowledge the significant efforts of Juan de Fuca Search and Rescue and all other assisting SAR agencies during this search period, particularly through challenging terrain during very warm weekend weather,” Sooke RCMP Sgt. Kevin Shaw said.

“The RCMP will continue to investigate Melissa’s disappearance in pursuit of answers for the McDevitt family.”

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McDevitt was reported missing to the Victoria Police Department on Dec. 10, 2022. Her vehicle was found at the Charters River/Hatchery parking lot on Sooke River Road in Sooke later that day.

Nearly seven months after their daughter’s disappearance, parents Tom and Maggie McDevitt reported in June a “monumental shift” in efforts to find her, including confirmation of her recent hiking routes.

Tom and Maggie moved to Vancouver Island from North Carolina in May to continue searching for McDevitt with a growing community of residents — skilled hikers in the Greater Victoria area — who regularly scour the trails to find their daughter. Their collaboration has now led to a breakthrough, Tom said.

“The process led to a lot of brainstorming. Because of my knowledge of Melissa’s email logins for different accounts … we were able to get into her Garmin-based website,” he explained.

Tom said the searchers had been analyzing McDevitt’s Facebook page and noticed that she recorded all of her hiking routes using a Garmin watch she sported in recently posted photos. He knew Melissa had been talking about getting a new watch and shared that with the community.

Anyone with information on Melissa McDevitt’s disappearance can call the Sooke RCMP at 250-642-5241.

— with files from Amy Judd, Elizabeth McSheffrey and Kylie Stanton