- A search was launched after finding “birth signs” on the river bank
- Police respond to fears newborn may be in water.
The frantic search for a mother and newborn continues after “birth signs” were discovered on a riverbank as police responded to fears the baby could be in the water.
A search is underway for a mother and her baby after a passer-by walking a dog spotted a placenta and umbilical cord on the banks of the Cook River in Earlwood, south-west of Sydney, about 4.30pm. of Monday.
Police later confirmed that the “evidence of birth” was human.
Search teams, boats and divers returned to the river at first light on Tuesday after a large-scale search was carried out in the area overnight.
When asked if police were concerned the baby might be in the water, Detective Chief Superintendent Christine McDonald said the whereabouts of the mother and child was police’s main concern.
“Right now our main concern is the whereabouts of the mother and child, we consider it really urgent to find her and her child, hopefully safe and sound,” he said at a news conference on Monday night.
Emergency services were called to the Cooks River near Wardell Road, Earlwood, at around 4.30pm on Monday after “evidence of a birth” had been located.
The police confirmed that the placenta and umbilical cord found on the river bank were human
Superintendent McDonald said it was unclear whether the child was born on the banks of the Cook River or elsewhere.
‘The only thing we know is that a placenta and an umbilical cord were located. Obviously, our search will identify what has occurred,” he said.
“It has not yet been determined whether the birth or delivery of that child occurred at this location or elsewhere.”
Police urged the mother and child to report to a hospital and said they do not need to talk to police if they do not want to.
Detectives are hopeful that a busy trail near the riverbank means there were witnesses who may have seen the mother and child.
“That’s why we’re asking for information overnight and tomorrow morning when people hear the news that the placenta and umbilical cord have been located,” Superintendent McDonald said on Monday.
More to come.