The snow covering the densely wooded, remote area of Kittitas County where the remains of Lindsey Baum were found last fall has melted and investigators took advantage by launching an intensive search of the area Saturday, about 20 miles west of Ellensburg.

Baum disappeared in June of 2009. The 10-year-old was walking home from a friend’s house in McCleary just four blocks from her own home.

On Friday, Grays Harbor County Sheriff Rick Scott held a news conference to announce that her remains were found by hunters last fall but were just positively identified by DNA analysis about two weeks ago.

“An initial area search was done after the remains were found in the fall of 2017, just prior to the first snowfall,” said Kittitas County Undersheriff Clay Myers. “Last week found that the last of the snow in the search area had melted, thus allowing for an additional search to be done.”

On Monday, Sheriff Scott said he was not at liberty to discuss what, if anything, was found during Saturday’s search. He added, “Sometimes not finding something helps us as much as finding something.”

Scott said a complete search of the area, described by Myers as “steep, heavily timbered with large cliffs and deep ravines,” will take some time.

“While we have a good portion of the immediate area searched, there is still a large area remaining to be searched,” said Scott. He said weather can play a factor but a favorable forecast means investigators will probably return to the area “sooner rather than later.”

Saturday’s search consisted of 22 K9 teams, Search and Rescue ground personnel and investigators from Kittitas County, King County and the Grays Harbor County Sheriff’s Office. The K9 teams are from across the state, said Myers, including Kittitas, Skamania, Lewis, Pierce, King, Snohomish, Mason, Kitsap and Spokane counties, and Kootenai County in Idaho. Tracking teams from King County, Idaho Mountain Search & Rescue and Lake County Sheriff’s Search & Rescue from Polson, Mont., assisted.

“It’s humbling to see the level of support for this case,” said Myers. “These search teams and investigators are among the best there are and they understand the relevance to the investigation, the family and the community. To watch them work, you would never guess they come from over 10 different agencies.”

Grays Harbor County Sheriff’s Office and the FBI continue to lead the investigation into Baum’s disappearance, but Scott said the searches of the area where Baum’s remains were found are coordinated by the Kittitas County Sheriff’s Office. Evidence collected can be analyzed by the state crime lab and the Seattle/Tacoma regional FBI office.

“Now begins the arduous task of going over all the information gathered over the years, especially in 2009, to see if there is anything that is going to point to Eastern Washington,” said Scott. “So right now we are in the very early stages. We have been receiving tips through email and phone tip lines, and at this point we are going to organize and prioritize the tips that hold the most promise.”

When Baum disappeared, a massive search was begun that evening, but that and subsequent searches for Baum didn’t provide any insight, at least any that was shared publicly, into what happened to her. For nearly nine years, the Grays Harbor County Sheriff’s Office, McCleary Police, the FBI and other law enforcement agencies across the region never gave up the search. The Sheriff’s Office always had people assigned to the case, and fliers were updated every year or so to keep the case in front of the public, with age progression photos showing what she may look like at a certain age.

The discovery of the remains last fall didn’t coincide with any known crime at the time, so their identification was on hold until a few weeks ago, when DNA tests revealed they were Baum’s. The delay in the identification is not unusual as remains that are known or believed to be tied to a crime get bumped to the front of the line, said Scott. As for the two-week delay in announcing the identification, Scott said at the press conference May 10 it was all part of the investigation, and he would not comment on the state of Baum’s remains, apparent cause of death or, at that time, even narrow the location to a specific county.

However, a search the size of the one held Saturday gained media attention and the location quickly became public knowledge.

“We can’t have as many people involved in this size search and not be noticed (by the media),” said Scott. “We knew full well we would only be able to maintain the integrity of the location for a short while. At least we were allowed to have an uncontaminated look at the scene.” He said he believes the Kittitas County Sheriff’s Office will provide some sort of security to keep people out of the search area whenever possible.

Anyone with information regarding this case is encouraged to call the tip line at 360-964-1799, or email baumtips@co.grays-harbor.wa.us.