Desperate Search Turns to Historic Mine Shafts
Nearly two months after four-year-old August ‘Gus’ Lamont vanished from his family’s remote property in the South Australian outback, the police investigation has taken a grim new turn. Authorities are now focusing their efforts on six uncovered mine shafts in the Yunta region, located between 5.5km and 12km from the Lamont family’s Oak Park homestead.
Specialised Operation Launched
In a concerted effort to solve the heartbreaking mystery, Special Tasks and Rescue (STAR) officers, alongside Task Force Horizon, are set to return to the area. The teams will spend up to three days meticulously scouring the shafts using specialised equipment, in a sombre mission to possibly recover the body of the missing boy.
Deputy Commissioner Linda Williams outlined the operation's critical purpose. “These searches will either locate evidence or eliminate these locations from further investigation,” she stated, confirming the process is designed to either uncover a crucial clue or rule out the sites entirely.
A Community Gripped by Mystery
The disappearance of Gus on September 27 has both mystified investigators and devastated the tight-knit community of Yunta, which has fewer than 100 residents. Authorities continue to stress there is no evidence of foul play.
The boy was last seen playing outside the homestead while his grandmother cared for his younger brother inside. His mother and other grandparent were tending sheep on the family’s vast 6000-hectare property, situated 43km south of Yunta.
The challenging landscape has been a major hurdle for search crews. The Yunta region has a long history of mining and prospecting, leaving the land dotted with shafts and diggings—many of them unfenced and undocumented. Police revealed they were not previously aware of the location of the six shafts now being searched, as they lie beyond the 5.5km radius covered in earlier, exhaustive sweeps.
Previous search efforts have been monumental, with crews battling scorching heat and rugged terrain across 470 square kilometres. In a significant move, a dam containing 3.2 million litres of water, located just 600m from the homestead, was drained on October 31 to rule out drowning. No trace of the boy was found.
The only potential clue discovered so far is a single footprint found on September 30, about 500m from where Gus was last seen. With no access to water, food, or shelter, survival in the unforgiving outback is considered unlikely. The case has now been handed to the Major Crime Investigation Branch, which is standard practice in such prolonged investigations.
Family friend Bill Harbison expressed the profound grief felt by all who know Gus. “We miss him more than words can express,” he said. Gus is described as having long curly blond hair and was last seen wearing a blue long-sleeved Minions T-shirt, a grey sun hat, and boots. Police continue to urge anyone with information to come forward as they remain committed to finding him.
