Search for Ruby Kerr cost Sault police up to $50K

The high-profile search for a missing girl who wandered away from St. Kateri Outdoor Learning Centre in the spring ended up costing Sault Ste. Marie Police Service somewhere between $30,000 and $50,000, the Police Services Board learned during a meeting Thursday. 

Ruby Kerr, an 11-year-old from the Sault, was found safe May 13 and reunited with her parents after going missing for more than 24 hours. 

The Grade 6 student had hiked approximately 9 km north of the Goulais Avenue learning centre before falling down an embankment. 

According to Environment Canada, the temperature dipped to a low of 5 degrees Celcius while Kerr was in the bush overnight. Her dad said she resorted to drinking lake water at one point, and was sent to hospital as a precaution. 

OPP helicopter pilots first spotted Ruby the following afternoon. 

The search team included close to 50 people, including the Ontario Provincial Police K-9 unit, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry, and Sault Search and Rescue. 

The costs to Sault police included staff overtime used for the search.  

Kerr is part of the Outdoor Learning Program at Holy Cross elementary school, a unique initiative of the Huron-Superior Catholic District School Board that focuses on Indigenous perspectives and land-based teachings. The program consists of a morning session at St. Kateri followed by an afternoon in-class session at the east-end school.

The Huron-Superior Catholic District School Board equipped children with whistles as a safety precaution during a cross-country meet at the outdoor learning centre in June.