Battlefords MLA Herb Cox has taken his time in the Saskatchewan Legislature to publicly acknowledge the community response to the Amber Alert that happened in September.
Cox made the remarks on Thursday on the second day of the fall session. In his speech he paid tribute to those involved in the successful effort to find a missing girl.
Here are some of his remarks as recorded in Hansard. As the issue is currently before the courts and a publication ban is in place on the identity of the victim, the name of the girl has been redacted.
Mr. Cox: — Thank you, Mr. Speaker. On September 16th the RCMP [Royal Canadian Mounted Police] issued an Amber Alert in the Battlefords ... Needless to say, her parents were frantic to find her. What ensued was one of the longest and most intense searches one could imagine.
The incident occurred around suppertime and the whole community of The Battlefords responded. Mr. Speaker, our local RCMP detachment did an excellent job of mobilizing every resource available to focus on this search. Their response to this situation was truly amazing. At the same time, hundreds of volunteers scoured streets, back alleys, parks, industrial businesses, country roads and ditches. As well, residents of surrounding communities and First Nations responded by travelling back roads. Along with hundreds of others, Linda and I spent several hours searching abandoned farmyards and little-used farm access roads. We literally met a vehicle every several hundred yards with a spotlight, hoping to locate (the girl).
.... Mr. Speaker, I would now ask that all of my colleagues please join me in commending and thanking the hundreds of volunteers, as well as the RCMP and local police who showed up to search ... It just shows what a great community we have in the Battlefords. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
