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EL PASO COUNTY, Colo. — The search for 11-year-old Gannon Stauch, who went missing earlier this week, continues on.

Members of the community spent Saturday covering every inch of the city to show their support, while law enforcement intensified their search of the entire area.

“He’s just been missing for a week now and I’m really scared,” 9-year-old Susy Salvidrez said while chalking a message of support for her classmate.

“I wrote, ‘Gannon please come home,'” she said.

A sign that says, “Pray for Gannon” can be seen near the search efforts.

Salvidrez and others gathered by the sign to continue to pray for Gannon’s safe return.

“It’s absolutely amazing what this community has done. Many don’t know Gannon but can put themselves in his family’s shoes,” Riderrick Drayton, a neighbor, said. “From here we’re going to join the search party to do our part because I would want someone to search for my child if they were missing.”

More than 160 volunteers are now involved in the search for Gannon.
The search is a multi-agency search involving El Paso County Sheriff’s Office, Search and Rescue, National Guard volunteer team and others.
“We’re searching a five mile radius. We’ve got drones, we’ve got razors, we’ve got people on foot and our mounted unit out here. Everyone who is out here is skilled in this kind of search effort,” said Jacqueline Kirby with the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office.
The area they’re focused on is barely a mile from the home where Gannon was last seen in the Lorson Ranch neighborhood. The terrain is mostly plains along with culverts and ditches.
Kirby says they’re keeping Gannon’s parents informed as the search continues.
“To have them be able to come by today and meet the volunteers, shake hands and say thank you I think it was a much needed activity for the family as well as the volunteers,” said Kirby.
Kirby says they’ve vetted about 300 citizen volunteer applications but have not called on those volunteers yet.
“Right now let this coordinated effort stay just that. We know that we live in such a wonderful community, they want to help, they’re begging to help. We need to stick with the resources we have at our disposal and when the need for citizen involvement arises I will be reaching out to those individuals,” said Kirby.
Kirby says the search area was determined by “leads and intel” they’ve gained through the investigation but could not elaborate. She says there is no active threat to the community.

If you would like to volunteer, visit the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office website.

 

 

 

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