Friends and family continue search for missing Vancouver Island man

Friends,family and volunteers continue to comb the woods west of Duncan, B.C., for signs of a missing Vancouver Island man, even though police and search and rescue efforts have been suspended.

Ben Kilmer, a41-year-old electrician from Cobble Hill, has been missing for a just over a week.

"We are obviously holding out that Ben is still alive somewhere and hoping to connect and find him and bring him home," said his brother-in-law, Ryan Corry.

On the afternoon of May 16,Kilmer'swork van was found abandoned onCowichanLake Road west of Duncan with the engine still running.

Asmall amount of blood and his personal items werefound inside the van, according toRCMP.

Kilmerwas last spotted on surveillance video at a job site shortly before 11 a.m. that samemorning.

"It's an ongoing missing persons investigation and it is a priority for our officers, but in consultation with Ben's family and search and rescue, the decision has been made to end the extensive six-day ground search," said Const. Pam Bolton of the NorthCowichan/DuncanRCMP.

At its peak, close to 100 volunteersand 60 search and rescue team members were searching the dense forest and rural area around whereKilmer'svan was found.

The effort included anRCMPdog team andcrews paddlingup and down theCowichanRiver. A small pond was drained to rule out whether it was a factor in the disappearance.

Dozens of friends, family members and volunteershave continuedwith the search someusing ATVs and dirt bikes, Corry said.

"The land out here is quite vast and very challenging to just cover on foot, andwe need people everywhere and diversity in the searches," Corry said.

Volunteers have also put up missing posters in communities across Vancouver Island hoping for any tips that could lead to a break in the case.

"As we all know, there really hasn't been any answers. No clues really turning up through the search. A lot of people were dumbfounded by it," Corry said.

Online fundraising campaigns have also been launched to support Kilmer's wife Tonyaand their two children, aged 5 and 2, he added.

Kilmer is described on a "missing" posteras five-foot-ten and 180 pounds. RCMPsay he has short brown hair and blue eyes. He is clean shaven and was last seen wearing light coloured pants, a black shirt and steel-toed work boots.

Anyone with informationis asked to callNorth Cowichan/Duncan RCMP at 250-748-5522 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.

With files from Megan Thomas