A desperate search continues for an Australian woman who vanished without a trace in the Canadian wilderness over two weeks ago. There are grave fears for Denise Ann Williams, 62, from Victoria, who disappeared while hiking in Cape Breton Highlands National Park in the Nova Scotia province.
She informed her family on April 15 that she was traveling to Chéticamp, a fishing village on Cape Breton Island, and has not been heard from since. She was reported missing on Tuesday local time, sparking an air and ground search spearheaded by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
Her rental Nissan Sentra has been located at a visitor center near the start of the Acadian Trail, an 8.4 km loop in the Cape Breton Highlands National Park. The trail has a 'moderate' difficulty rating, according to the Parks Canada website. Cape Breton Highlands National Park is renowned for its rugged and steep coastline, where hikers are warned to be vigilant for moose and black bears.
'Bears are coming out of hibernation. It's also mating season,' Nova Scotia police corporal Mandy Edwards told the ABC. Police are hopeful she encountered other hikers who may recognize her from a photo released by authorities.
Temperatures have fluctuated between zero and 10 degrees Celsius in recent days, with strong winds and snow forecast for this weekend. The difficult terrain is also hampering search efforts. 'We have very mountainous terrain here,' Chéticamp Search and Rescue president Chris Bellmore told CBC News. 'There's a lot of water here and there's actually still snow up here in the Highlands and in some areas that makes it a bit of a challenge to search.'
The Department of Natural Resources helicopter crews, police dog units, Civil Air Search and Rescue Association, Parks Canada, Nova Scotia Public Safety Field Communications, and EHS Emergency Preparedness and Special Operations are all involved in the multi-agency search.
Ms. Williams is described as 162 cm tall with greyish-blonde, shoulder-length hair. She is believed to have been wearing a dark winter jacket, a powder blue beanie with 'Antarctica' written on it, an orange and blue scarf, and glasses.
Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade confirmed that consular assistance is being provided to Ms. Williams' family. 'Owing to our privacy obligations we are unable to provide further comment,' a department spokesperson said.
