Dozens of people converge on the area to help in the search.
BOWDOINHAM – A 9-year-old New Hampshire boy who disappeared into the woods along Ridge Road Thursday morning was still missing after dark.
Investigators said Grant Thompson went into the woods behind his grandparents’ house at about 9 a.m. Shortly after, the boy’s dog walked out of the woods alone.
What followed was a search that involved dozens of volunteers from the area who were helping local and state officials hunt for the boy. The search also involved tracking dogs, all-terrain vehicles and aircraft.
By early evening, volunteers were still showing up at 601 Ridge Road or at the nearby fire station to offer help to searchers.
Other locals drove up with cases of bottled water for those who had been at the scene for hours.
During the afternoon, Maine Warden Service searchers flew over the massive expanse of woods in an airplane, hoping to spot the boy on the ground. Thick foliage hampered their efforts however, according to Sagadahoc County Sheriff’s officials.
By 7 p.m., the Brunswick Naval Air Station had sent a helicopter to the area. The craft made wide circles around the woods where Grant was last seen.
Police said the boy had just come with his parents from Nashua, N.H., to visit his grandparents, who live on Ridge Road. He went into the woods with his dog, a camera and a hand-held video game, officials said. The boy was wearing denim shorts, sandals and a “Where the Wilds Things Are” T-shirt.
When the dog returned to the house without the boy, his family began to search. When the boy was not found, sheriff’s officials were called. A search effort got underway immediately.
Volunteers from Bowdoinham and Richmond began to trickle in soon after. But once the story about the missing boy hit the television news stations, they came in droves.
“We saw it on the news and we wanted to come out. We heard the boy is from New Hampshire. Figured we’d show a little Maine hospitality,” said Bill Bendlak, a 42-year-old who has lived in Bowdoinham for a quarter century.
“We know these woods,” said Bobby Lynd, a 28-year-old who went to the scene with Bendlak. “There are a lot of things that can hurt you out there.”
Lynd said there are streams and brooks in the woods where Thompson was last seen. There are also fallen tree limbs and branches ready to drop at any time.
Ridge Road is off Route 197, near the Richmond town line.
Still two hours from nightfall, Bendlak said he was eager to join the search. He expected the temperatures to drop once the sun went down and he was concerned about the boy’s health.
“There are a lot of woods out here. It’s real thick,” Bendlak said. “I’ve been turned around in there myself.”
Sheriff’s officials and game wardens were coordinating the search efforts. They were assembling volunteers into teams and sending them in once a different team came out of the woods without success.
In addition, at least a dozen area people were out on ATVs, riding along a network of trails that snake through the woods.
Jessica Caron, an emergency medical technician, got a call from the Fire Department late in the day. She went to Ridge Road at once.
“I got my four-wheeler and came out. I’m just waiting to be assigned,” she said.
Volunteers continued arriving in the area as darkness fell. Some carried their own backpacks, with bottled water, food and insect repellent. Others drove up to the scene and asked how they could best be of service.
“Everyone is rallying together,” Caron said. “They heard about it and they want to help.”
Sagadahoc County Sheriff’s Sgt. Peter Lamarre said police and wardens were being careful to send search teams in separately to avoid confusion in the woods. One things they feared was people wandering into the woods alone and possibly getting lost while searching for Grant Thompson.
Police detectives were also at the scene Wednesday although there were no indications that foul play was involved in the disappearance.
At 601 Ridge Road, friends of the Thompson family were distributing photos of the missing boy. The family dog, who went into the woods with the boy earlier in the day, wandered around the yard, occasionally barking at the crowd of people.
The search was expected to continue into the night. If the boy were not found by Thursday morning, crews would re-assemble and prepare to start all over again.
Volunteers who live in the area said the vast woods where the boy vanished stretch on to White Street, more than a mile away. Searchers were also combing through the woods on the White Street end.
Most who gathered around waiting to search said they would stay in the area as long as they were needed. And many said they would return Thursday if necessary.
“I want to help out any way I can,” said Caron, before she rode off on an ATV. “I have an 11-year-old son myself. I’d want people to be there if he were lost.”
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