KOTA KINABALU: The search for a toddler who vanished from her home has been called off after a futile week of combing a jungle and river in the Beaufort district.
Rescuers failed to locate 18-month-old Jude Angel Jeremy, saying that they would resume the search if new clues emerged.
“If anyone finds a new clue or trace, the search will begin again,” said Beaufort Fire and Rescue Department operations chief Mohammad Hasbullah Nenggok.
“The department is prepared to mount another operation at any time,” he added.
For now, he said he had instructed his men to keep tabs with the family on a daily basis.
Jude was reported missing by family members on July 9 after the door to her house in Kampung Saliwangan Baru was found ajar.
Her grandmother was looking after her as her parents, both farmers, were away selling their produce at Beaufort town.
It was feared that she could have wandered into the jungle nearby and got lost or fallen into Sungai Padas, which is about 30m from her home.
The search teams, made up of different enforcement agencies, have also repeatedly searched through a small pond which is just a stone’s throw away from the house.
Mohammad Hasbullah said 25 men from the Fire and Rescue Department, police, Rela and Civil Defence Force, as well as 30 villagers, were involved in the search.
“However, we still came to a dead end despite expanding the search by a 2km radius today (on Friday),” he added.