So far, a helicopter has flown over the area, but as it is a densely wooded area, the sixty-year-old has not been located. Ground searches were also carried out, but the snow that has fallen since he was last seen has had the effect of erasing traces.
New information received Friday afternoon led the police to a new lead that they had to validate by returning to search a location where movement was detected.
“What we are looking for are traces that have been covered with snow, because nine centimeters fell. We are therefore trying to find traces that could lead us to something, but we have nothing,” underlined Lieutenant Hugo Fournier, met in the command post which was erected by the Sûreté du Québec in the park parking lot. .
This is where the areas are mapped using GPS once the volunteers and police return. If the first days were mainly on the outskirts of the forest, the searches are going deeper and deeper into the forest which communicates with the Mauricie national park, we were informed.
Lieutenant Hugo Fournier provided an update on the searches in the Sûreté du Québec command post. (Sébastien Lacroix/Le Nouvelliste)
When passing the News writerFriday, in the middle of the day, practically the entire recreational forest park had been raked, even on the east side. “We went up to the Devil’s Falls. We have a very large sector,” underlined the lieutenant of the Sûreté du Québec, who is in charge of the research. “All trails have been done multiple times.”
The agents also carried out searches on snowmobiles, zigzagging for about forty kilometers in the Mauricie park. “We went as far as Caribou Lake,” he said.
Even the hikers were called upon by the police who asked them to pay attention. “There are walkers who circulate regularly, even in the evening and early in the morning. If they had seen something, they would have reported it to us, but to date, we have nothing,” underlined Lieutenant Hugo Fournier.
Officers canvassed the area on snowmobiles. (Sébastien Lacroix/Le Nouvelliste)
The police also received help from volunteers from the Eureka Research Rescue group. They first combed the first 300 meters around the parking lot before patrolling certain sectors delegated to them by the SQ.
“The first 300 meters, we squared it properly. In the statistics of missing persons, the highest probability is that she will be found in this radius. Once this has been done, we can look at other potential sectors. We returned to small areas that the police had not covered well, according to the GPS tracks. Today, that’s what we do. Sectors at the end of the amphitheater, the bottom of cliffs, those things,” says team leader Éric Pronovost.
Éric Pronovost, the team leader of the Eureka Sauvetage Recherche group who was called in for reinforcements for a third day. (Sébastien Lacroix/Le Nouvelliste)
This indicates that the snow which has fallen since the disappearance has slowed down the search somewhat, since volunteers have to pay more attention to the ground. “If the person is deceased, it is certainly more difficult to locate if they are lying on the ground. It’s more complicated, so we are more careful in our research,” explains the team leader who has around fifteen years of experience.
Despite the cold, the weather conditions are still mild for the team of volunteers. “It’s not that snowy. The snow cover is not that thick. You can walk on foot, it’s less difficult than walking on snowshoes. The weather is dry. It helps us too. “It’s better than rain or wet snow,” adds Éric Pronovost.
The hypothesis favored by the Trois-Rivières Police Department, which is responsible for the investigation, is that Yves Verville went hiking and got lost.
“We are not abandoning the other hypotheses, but I would tell you that it is the most plausible,” explains the captain of the DPTR, Carole Lebel. “He is a gentleman who is very physically fit. He’s used to walking.”
(Trois-Rivières police department)
“There was no history of chicanery. It’s no longer part of the hypotheses, she assures. Are these health issues or was he taking medication? Could it be that, but from the outset, he was someone who walked a lot in these areas, but could he have gotten lost and not found his way?
The investigation also revealed that the individual had made purchases in Shawinigan, before his vehicle was located in the parking lot of the Saint-Mathieu-du-Parc recreational forest park. “It’s a purchase in anticipation of a Christmas meal that he will never make it to,” says the captain.
