THE father of missing Skipton man Rory Johnson-Hatfield has appealed for help in mounting his own search of York's River Ouse, following the police's decision to call off their search.
But York Rescue Boat, which assisted police in searching the Ouse last week, has strongly advised against anyone making unassisted searches because of the dangers posed while it is in flood.
Doug Hatfield, a former Skipton restaurateur, spoke out on the special 'Rory Johnson is Missing!' Facebook group set up after his 29-year-old son, of Skipton, disappeared during a night out in York in the early hours of Friday November 20. Rory works at Brody's restaurant in Skipton.
His father said: "The river search for Rory by the police has now ended and we have not yet been informed as to when or if it will be resumed.
"I would like to make an appeal to anybody that has a boat on the river Ouse in York that the family could use in order to resume this part of the search. Thank you in advance."
His appeal has met with offers of help, for example from someone in Harrogate who said their 'other half' had a two-man 'rib' which Mr Hatfield could borrow, but others posted messages saying they were concerned about the potential dangers of going out on the river in its flooded state.
Dave Benson, chairman and director of operations for York Rescue Boat, responded by posting: "While this is an extremely difficult time, I would strongly advise people not to make unassisted searches of the river. Currently the river is at flood levels and even when the river goes down it will still pose many dangers for sometime after."
He asked for Rory's family to contact him directly so he could advise how the organisation could offer its assistance and guidance.
He said that the rescue boat, with its trained personnel, would not be deployed for a search during current conditions but would happily work with the family to carry out surface searches when the floodwaters have eventually gone down.
North Yorkshire Police said on Friday that very extensive searches of the river had been concluded and there was presently no reason to continue the search, although it would be resumed if further information allowed police to target a specific location.
A force spokesman said today: “Extensive inquiries are continuing today.”
Meanwhile, Mr Hatfield has thanked everyone for their 'heartfelt support and concern for our much loved son and brother', saying: "The overwhelming response in the search for Rory has touched the family very deeply. I would like everybody to remain positive and let's all do our very best to bring our son home."
People have also been asked to print off a missing poster and put it up in shops and bars, and post it through letterboxes in the Tower Street and Terry Avenue area of York.