« WILLIE CRAIN STAYS HOME | Main | Teams with dogs report no results »
February 27, 2009
Dogs prompt police to sift through trash bin
Topics: News
Haleigh Cummings
By Larry Sullivan and Kristin Chambers
Published: Friday, February 27, 2009 1:16 AM EST
SATSUMA - Authorities emptied a large trash container near the home of Haleigh Cummings after specially trained search dogs Thursday indicated a body might be nearby.
There wasn't.
And the search for the missing 5-year-old continues today.
"We collected nothing tonight," Maj. Gary Bowling of the Putnam County Sheriff's Office said. "We are relieved."
*
Three dogs "alerted" at the same spot during separate passes, the last at about 4:30 p.m.
As a result, about a dozen detectives and heavy equipment were brought in to sift through the red 30-foot container inside River Villas. Crews, with the help of a backhoe and portable spotlights, removed the container's contents - brush, bags of leaves and a few items from a home construction project.
"We decided it was prudent and responsible to go ahead and search through it," Bowling said. "We're just going through this item by item by item, and inch by inch."
Four hours later, the container was empty. Authorities had no explanation, but said the dogs, trained to help find human remains, would have reacted to the scent from a bandage or personal hygiene items.
Seven dog-and-handler teams Thursday canvassed Haleigh's neighborhood off U.S. 17 south of Palatka. Today, 12 teams were scheduled to search.
Today marks the 18th day the 3-foot-tall, blond-haired kindergartner has been missing, triggering a massive search and criminal investigation by local, state and federal investigators.
The trash bin examined Thursday had been checked before by bloodhounds and other searchers with no reaction, Bowling said.
This marked the second time investigators have sifted through trash in the neighborhood. Authorities also checked 12 tons of trash collected from homes in the area by Waste Pro crews, Bowling said.
Members of Haleigh's family were briefed by authorities when Thursday's search was finished. Some watched reports about the effort on television while hoping a body wouldn't be found.
"I'm hanging in there," Crystal Sheffield, Haleigh's mother, said Thursday night.
Earlier in the day, Sheffield was optimistic.
"That they haven't found her - dead - makes me feel better, because I know she's out there, I know she's alive and she is coming home," Sheffield said "But I am very satisfied with what the sheriff's office is doing."
Meanwhile, authorities late Thursday released the blue-and-white doublewide mobile home where Haleigh was last seen. It had been surrounded with crime-scene tape and repeatedly searched since Feb. 10.
The search with so-called cadaver dogs is designed to ensure nothing is being overlooked.
"The dogs are trained in finding cadavers, which will hopefully rule out the search of Haleigh in this area," Pat Totillo, a member of K9 Search and Rescue of Orange City, said. "The best scenario, of course, is that they don't find anything."
Teams searched within a quarter-mile of the Cummings home.
"It's good they are eliminating the possibility, but I don't think she's out there," Teresa Neves, Haleigh's paternal grandmother, said. "I feel like my granddaughter's alive and that's my faith and hope."
According to Totillo, the dogs alternate between searching for 45 minutes and resting for 45 minutes.
More than 2,000 leads are still being investigated by authorities. Recently reported sightings have been negative, but hope remains for family members.
"There's always a feeling in your stomach that she's there, and when it's not her, it's disheartening, " Neves said. "We're just trusting the detectives to bring our baby home."
Anyone with information about Haleigh is asked to call Crime Stoppers at (888) 277-8477.
lsullivan@palatkadailynews.com
kchambers@palatkadailynews.com
In this case, NO NEWS IS GOOD NEWS
Posted by admin at February 27, 2009 8:31 AM
Trackback Pings
TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.amandabrownfoundation.org/mt/mt-tb.cgi/385
