Police are appealing for public assistance to locate a 17-year-old boy from the Latrobe Valley who went missing near Walhalla in Victoria’s east on Friday, November 6.
William, whose surname has not been released by authorities, was camping with another teenager in Walhalla East, near Cowwarr. He walked a short distance to another part of their camp near Stoney Creek Road and T2 Track but failed to return.
Victoria Police Superintendent Melanie Hamshere said the teenager had taken his shirt off due to warm weather on Friday afternoon, expecting a 20-minute walk. She stated, “So at the time he went missing he was only wearing shorts and boots.” William had gone to collect an esky, two pillows, a fishing tackle box, and a brown tabletop, and did not take his phone. The esky was later found a short way up the track.
A cold snap brought a late dusting of snow to some of Victoria’s mountain ranges over the weekend. At Mount Baw Baw, about 45 minutes’ drive north-east of Walhalla, overnight temperatures dropped below zero degrees Celsius on Saturday and Sunday.
William’s mother, Elizabeth Barclay, told the ABC on Sunday that her son is an inexperienced camper with a poor sense of direction in an unfamiliar area.
Police have resumed the search for the teenager today and have set up a staging area at Cowwarr Recreational Reserve. About 70 people searched for William on Sunday, supported by a police helicopter, water police, and the dog squad.
Authorities are hoping to speak with a bearded man and a woman who helped William’s friend on Friday night. The friend had flagged down their older white ute with a black canopy when he began looking for William. Superintendent Hamshere said police are “appealing to the public to try and identify that couple.”