Family and community volunteers continue to search for 4-year-old Lucian Munguia, who was last seen a week ago at Sarg Hubbard Park in Yakima.
Lucian's family is asking for more volunteers to help as law enforcement search and rescue teams have scaled back their efforts.
Lucian, who has autism, was last seen wearing blue shorts and a blue shirt with a shark on it. He was last seen Sept. 10, headed south and east across the park's parking lot in the direction of the Yakima River and other bodies of water.
The family has created a new Facebook page called Finding Lucian, family member Amy Bailey said Saturday morning.
Bailey, Lucian's aunt, said the page makes it more efficient for the family to comb through leads and distribute information. An electronic version of the boy's missing poster is available on the page, and she encouraged people to download it, share it or print it off.
"We appreciate everybody's help and we absolutely need their help, as well as we need volunteers to continue to help search for him online and if they're here," Bailey said.
The family has a base of operations at Sarg Hubbard Park where volunteers can go to pick up missing child posters or join the search.
Bailey said the search is expanding further into the city of Yakima, with volunteers taking flyers to parks throughout the city.
People are also checking rest stops, ranger stations and hiking trails. Bailey said the search areas include spots with thick, dense brush that is difficult to move through.
"Finding hikers that have experience that can push through those things is difficult," she said. "We're on the right track with things, it's just a stressful situation."
She said people can help by posting the missing flyers in their vehicle windows so more people see them throughout the area. She also asked people traveling through town to take flyers with them to rest stops or back to their home communities.
Bailey said the family is incredibly appreciative of all the help they've gotten so far from volunteers and local businesses, including the Print Guys, who donated over 5,000 flyers, she said.
"We really are appreciative and we do really need everybody's help," she said.
Personnel from the Yakima Police Department, Yakima County Sheriff's Office Search and Rescue, and teams from around the state have been involved in the search. Boats, divers, drones and ATVs have all been used while combing the surrounding area.
Contact the Yakima Police Department at 509-575-6200 or 911 with any information or tips. People may also email YPD@yakimawa.gov.
