Chilliwack mother pushing for alert system after missing daughter found dead

The mother of a Chilliwack woman whose body was pulled from the Fraser River last year is putting pressure on Ottawa to bring in an alert system for missing adults.

Alina Durham says such a system would be invaluable to police and families in the critical first hours after a person is reported missing, such as the case of her daughter, Shaelene Bell.

The system she’s proposing would be similar to the current Amber Alert system for children who are believed to have been abducted.

“We know that … has been successful. We could have used that in my daughter’s case right away, to have a missing adult alert out there right away.”

She says having a Canada-wide alert system for missing adults could increase the chances of safe return.

“[The alerts] provide the public with immediate and up to date information and solicit the public’s assistance, which can result in a safe return of the missing adult. You can save a life.”

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Durham has reached out to Chilliwack MP Mark Strahl, who she says promised to look into the matter.

“I’m not stopping there,” she said. “I will be reaching out to Justin Trudeau and I will also be reaching out to the governor general and pretty much everyone I have to … It should be passed right now.”

Durham says often times when adults go missing, family is not immediate notified, leading to “lost time in finding the person.”

“It’s not a matter of why we should do it, it’s that this issue merits complete action right away, because time is of the essence.”

She acknowledges there are Facebook groups dedicated to getting the word out about missing people, but says the information needs to be targeted and streamlined to ensure people are given accurate details.

“What I’d like to see happen would be law enforcement confirms the adult is missing, confirms the adult is at risk of injury or death, then publishing missing adults name, age picture, maybe vehicle description, and last known location.”

Durham plans to host a small event in Shaelene’s memory on Jan. 30, one year to the day since she was last seen.

The body of the 23-year-old mother of two was found in the Fraser River near Coquitlam about four months later.

RCMP don’t believe anything criminal led to her death.

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