A desperate search is underway to find missing three-year-old Noah Woods who was last seen running away from a playground in Suffolk.
The little boy was last seen at 3pm on Tuesday, Suffolk Police said, when he became separated from a relative after visiting the play area in the village of Brantham.
Hundreds of people are now searching for him, including dozens of volunteers, but as of Wednesday morning on the second day of the search, there were no known sightings of the young boy.
Here, the Independent looks at everything we know about the search for Noah.
Who is Noah Woods?
Noah, 3, is described as white with curly ginger hair.
He was last seen wearing a white T-shirt with the TV character Bluey on it, shorts and black Vans trainers with a white stripe.
His father has said he is mildly autistic and has partial hearing loss but is capable of everyday tasks.
“To clear things up because people really do make up their own stories, he is only mildly autistic and has partial hearing loss, he is fully capable of every day tasks,” Rhys Woods wrote on Facebook.
Suffolk Police said Noah is “described as non-verbal, has partial hearing loss and is currently undergoing an assessment for autism”.
The force said that he will not respond to his name.
When and where did Noah go missing?
Noah was last seen on Tuesday at 3pm, when he became separated from a relative after a visit to Merriam Close playground in Brantham, near Manningtree.
He is believed to have run off down the alleyway beside the playground towards the new build housing estate, police said.
The village has a population of around 2,300 people and is located in the parish of Babergh, Suffolk.
It is on the border of Essex, around 9 miles from Ipswich, and is located near the River Stour, surrounded by picturesque countryside. Nearby villages include Stutton, Tattingstone, East Bergholt and Flatford.
What is the latest on the search?
In an update at 5.40am on Wednesday, Brantham parish council said there had been no confirmed sightings of Noah.
Police said specially trained officers and dog units have been searching the village, located near the estuary of the River Stour.
They have been supported by helicopters from the National Police Air Service and the coastguard, with further support on the ground provided by other agencies and a vast number of members of the public, including local search and rescue teams.
Police earlier asked local residents to thoroughly check their gardens, sheds and outbuildings or any potential areas where a child might hide.
Anyone with private CCTV or doorbell cameras in the village, or who were driving through the area with a dashcam, are asked to review the footage from 3pm yesterday afternoon onwards for any possible sightings of Noah.
However, Noah’s father has asked volunteers to avoid searching near the pond close to the playground that he went missing from yesterday.
Mr Woods said the pond had been searched “thoroughly” and the amount of people in the area was “making it hard to pick up the infrared signal we need”.
He said: “We still have nothing, all the emergency services and all of you have shown how strong this community is, with people coming from far and wide also, the emergency services are very confident that the high risk areas (decoy pond, railway lines) are all clear.
“Thank you again for all your help, and I’m praying we find him,” he added.
What have the police said?
Suffolk Police have said they are “very concerned” about Noah’s welfare and need to find him as a matter of urgency.
Superintendent Pete Partridge said in a statement:“A vast number of resources have been deployed by ourselves, our emergency services colleagues and volunteers from SULSAR.
These resources have been bolstered by members of the public who have turned out in large numbers to assist and we are incredibly grateful for their help and support.
“Given that fast-moving nature of the investigation, it is important that any public searches are coordinated with police to ensure we are working together, and that our resources are directed where they can be most effective.”
He asked local residents not to “put themselves at risk or undertake independent searches overnight”, adding: “We will continue to keep Noah’s family and the public updated on the progress of our searches and investigation.”
First CCTV images released of Noah
In an update on Wednesday afternoon, police released the first CCTV images and footage of Noah’s last movements at the play park.
Superintendent Tom Pearse said his disappearance is being treated as a missing person investigation and there is nothing to indicate anything sinister or any element of criminality has taken place.
He said: “It has now been around 24 hours since Noah was reported as missing to us and we are doing everything we can to find him.
“We are extremely grateful for the support shown by the public. If you are helping please report into the co-ordination centre to ensure the search continues to be done in a systematic and co-ordinated fashion. This will ensure we can carefully plan and take account of people supporting the search. We politely ask people to avoid open waters and railways – these are areas that require specialist and professional expertise. We also ask that personal drones are not used as these can interfere with specialist search equipment.
“There may also be times when officers may need to restrict access to certain areas or move away from search locations. Please do not be offended if this happens; it is necessary to allow us to carry out our enquiries and search activity as effectively as possible.
“There may also be times when officers may need to restrict access to certain areas or move away from search locations. Please do not be offended if this happens; it is necessary to allow us to carry out our enquiries and search activity as effectively as possible.
“This is being treated as a missing person investigation at this stage and there is nothing to indicate anything sinister or any element of criminality has taken place although we keep an open mind as to the circumstances.
“We continue to call on local residents to please check your gardens, sheds and outbuildings, or any other place a child may have be hidden or sought shelter. Please also review CCTV or doorbell cameras, and for motorists travelling in and around Brantham to review any dashcam footage from 3pm yesterday.”
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