Maine

Search for 5-Year-Old Boy In Maine River Being Treated as Recovery

The search for a missing 5-year-old boy who fell into a river near Auburn, Maine continues, although WCSH is reporting that police are now treating the search as a "recovery" rather than a "rescue."

The boy's 9-year-old brother, who was pulled from the Androscoggin River on Tuesday, remains hospitalized in critical condition at Maine Medical Center.

Auburn Deputy Police Chief Jason Moen said at a press conference earlier Wednesday at approximately 11:15 a.m. that parts of the search were wrapping up as he spoke.

"The air operations portion of the search has been suspended due to deteriorating weather conditions for the aircraft," Moen said. "The ground teams have completed their area searches along the river banks, and now our focus is strictly on the water within the river itself."

Moen said that the weather and the water conditions were the two biggest challenges in the search at this point, citing high water levels, a fast river speed and varying currents. Divers are having a tough time with visibility, he said.

The search is focused on a 1.5 mile area on the Androscoggin.

Moen urged the public to avoid trying to conduct the search themselves. One person, who was on Facebook Live as he attempted to search along the river, wound up falling in.

"Please stay away from the river," Moen said. "We've got trained personnel conducting the searches right now. We appreciate the willingness to help, but it’s safer for them to stay away from the river at this point."

It is unclear what caused the brothers to fall into the river. The boys' father and 8-year-old sister were unable to rescue them after they fell in late Tuesday, accodring to News Center Maine.

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