Police investigating the disappearance of six year old Coral Burrows hope these items of clothing will act as a prompt for public help in the search for the little Featherston schoolgirl.
Detective Inspector Rod Drew, head of Operation Reef, says that with the help of Coral’s family they’ve been able to get clothes similar to those worn by Coral on the day she disappeared.
When Coral was dropped at South Featherston School on Tuesday morning, she was wearing:
• A long sleeved blue cotton top with a silver cat printed on the front
• Red track pants with white stripes down the side
• A multi light and dark camouflaged blue patterned fleece top
• Black ankle length slip on gumboots with blue trim.
• A pink jacket with diamond shaped teal blue green flashes on the shoulders, wrist and chest. The jacket has a zip front, with a dome flap covering the zip. The hood can be rolled into the collar when not worn.
"There’s a huge amount of public support in the search for Coral and we’re hoping that by showing these items, people will let us know if they see them discarded on a roadside, in bush, scrub, water or elsewhere.
"People can contact the inquiry team on free phone 0508 677 333 or 0508 OP REEF."
Mr Drew said about 70 searchers have spent the day scouring the difficult bush terrain off the Rimutaka Hill Road. Other police and Coastguard search teams have used three boats to scour the lower reaches of the Ruamahanga River, Lake Onoke, Ferry and Wairarapa. Police divers have also continued their search of Abbot’s Creek where Coral’s bag was found.
Tomorrow most of the search teams will have a rest day after spending long hours in physically demanding conditions. They’ll also be evaluating the search to date and determining other search areas.
Twenty detectives from a CIB course at the Police College will also join the team for Sunday to help with door to door inquiries at rural properties in South Wairarapa.
"We’ve spent a good part of today consolidating the information that has come in to date, analysing the content and undertaking follow up inquiries."
Mr Drew says morale in the investigation team is high and they’re "totally committed to finding Coral."
He says Coral’s family and police want to thank the public for their help to date. "We know there’s a lot of people in the Wairarapa and throughout New Zealand who have sent messages of support, food and flowers. That’s wonderful. Everyone wants to find Coral."