The search for missing six-year-old Joslin Smith is intensifying in Saldanha with an identified area in Diazville that was subdivided into zones as part of the coordination of the search.
The search party has also been bolstered by a contingent from the local South African Navy joining the search and another large group from the City of Cape Town also deployed from Monday to the area. The Saldanha Bay municipality’s firefighters are also playing a pivotal role applying their expertise in the search.
The South African Police Service has also brought in the services of the mounted unit, more specialised dogs from the K9 unit are set to scour the identified area. Detectives from the SAPS provincial office in Cape Town have since descended on the West Coast town to support the local investigators.
The efforts from all the role players are enhanced by drones from the SAPS and the City of Cape Town. Meanwhile scores of neighbourhood watch members, community-based organisations and local residents have also been working around the clock in the quest to find Joslin.
Items found during a search over the weekend have been sent to the Plattekloof forensic laboratory for analysis as part of the investigation.
A humble plea is hereby made by the South African Police Service investigators to members of the public to refrain from spreading false information on social media and desist from recording the searches as this may adversely impact the investigation. The primary focus of the coordinated efforts should be to find Joslin or what happened to her.
