Officers searching a Suffolk landfill site in the hunt for missing RAF Honington serviceman Corrie McKeague have cleared more than 3,100 tonnes of waste - but expect work to last at least a further week.
Specially trained police officers have been searching an area of landfill in Milton, near Cambridge, since March 6.
Corrie, 23, was last seen at 3.24am on September 24, after a night out in Bury St Edmunds. He was recorded on a CCTV camera entering a refuse area behind Greggs, off Brentgovel Street.
The decision to search the landfill came after an error in the recorded weight of rubbish removed from the bins behind Greggs was revealed.
Originally police were told it weighed less than 15kg, however the true weight later emerged to have been in excess of 110kg.
It means Corrie could have been inside the bin when the rubbish was removed and taken to landfill.
Suffolk Constabulary has confirmed today that the work will continue for at least a further week.
Officers have completed work on searching the landfill cell that was originally identified.
MORE: Landfill search for missing Corrie McKeague is expanded
However, towards the edges of that area it was noticed that the waste may have naturally shifted from where it was originally deposited. The search has been extended into these areas, which officers hope may still hold the answer to Corrie’s disappearance.
Throughout the search, officers have found material which they believe indicated they are in the right area – finding waste that was identifiable as being from Bury St Edmunds, and within the right time frame.
A Suffolk police spokesman said the work is continually being reviewed, with daily updates passed to senior officers overseeing the investigation.
A police spokesman said: “The officers carrying out the search have been working extremely hard in difficult circumstances – with the nature of the waste being searched through, safety considerations, the weather and the depth of the search required presenting a number of daily challenges.
“Throughout the search Corrie has very much been in the forefront of officers’ minds.”
The total cost of the investigation to date, including the search of the site, is estimated at over £1million.
Enquiries have been continuing, with officers gathering further information about Corrie’s lifestyle and background.
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