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30 January, 2023

Mine shaft search continues as Daryl Floyd calls on government to deliver funds

Daryl Floyd is more certain than ever that his brother’s final resting place is the Morning Star mineshaft near Avoca, after specialist cadaver dogs attended the site over the weekend. Search Dogs Sydney spent Saturday going over dirt and material...

By Riley Upton

Volunteer David Coyle and Daryl Floyd spent time spreading dirt at the Morning Star mine near Avoca last week, in preparation for cadaver dogs to check for any remains of missing boy Terry Floyd. Photo: 310123 39
Volunteer David Coyle and Daryl Floyd spent time spreading dirt at the Morning Star mine near Avoca last week, in preparation for cadaver dogs to check for any remains of missing boy Terry Floyd. Photo: 310123 39

Daryl Floyd is more certain than ever that his brother’s final resting place is the Morning Star mineshaft near Avoca, after specialist cadaver dogs attended the site over the weekend.

Search Dogs Sydney spent Saturday going over dirt and material that had been pulled out of the mine in the search for Terry Floyd, the 12-year-old boy who has been missing for almost 50 years.

Terry was last seen on the side of the Pyrenees Highway on June 28, 1975, within hundreds of metres of the mineshaft, where clothing and jewellery believed to have been worn by the boy on the day of his disappearance have been found.

While the search dogs had no significant reactions to the material from inside the mineshaft, Mr Floyd said it meant they were that much closer to finding answers.

“It’s a process of elimination and we’re able to totally eliminate all of the material we’ve pulled from the mine to date,” he said.

“We’ve explored around 80 percent of that mine already, that means Terry is likely in the 20 percent left to go through.

“Information that has come to hand, and continues to come to hand, suggests this mine is the place to look — there’s nowhere else he could be.”

In 2000, Victoria Police’s Homicide Squad reopened the investigation into the boy’s disappearance and the following year, a coroner determined that Terry had been murdered but no body has ever been found and no one charged.

Volunteers have worked at clearing the 180-foot mineshaft for years however inclement weather, the COVID-19 pandemic and work commitments have slowed progress.

Mr Floyd had been in discussions with the Victorian Government about covering the cost of an expert mining team to complete the excavation, with around $60,000 sought however the government is yet to give its answer.

“Prior to COVID the State Government did come forward and give us funding. It was from that funding that we were able to find a shoe and various other pieces of clothing we believe belong to Terry,” he said.

“Because of the COVID lockdowns and restrictions we haven’t been able to come back to the mine site for the past couple of years but now we are coming back, we need to finish what was started.

“I’m very thankful and grateful for the government’s support so far, but if we don’t get anymore funding at this point in time, we’ve got to walk away.”

Mr Floyd said the lack of interest or response from the government was frustrating given how close the search is to completion.

“We’re doing this to find Terry’s remains and take him out to where his parents are buried — no one deserves to be out in the bush in the middle of nowhere,” he said.

“When we first started this it was a search for myself and the family but with the community support and spirit we’ve now got behind us, it’s become everyone’s search.

“Most families have lived a lifetime not knowing what happened to their loved ones and we can’t keep hanging on, not knowing if we’re going to get the funding to keep going or not.

“Let’s do the right thing and get this done.”

The Victorian Government has provided $110,000 to the excavation so far, with around $25,000 of the initial funding still available.

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