The wind whipped through the helicopter as Cameron Steele scanned the shoreline below. For the last 36 hours, he and his family have desperately searched for any sign of their missing brother along P.E.I.’s rugged north coast.
“Every second counts when someone’s in the water,” Cameron told me yesterday, his voice catching slightly as we spoke near the search command post in North Rustico. “We couldn’t just sit and wait.”
His brother Thomas Steele, 29, failed to return from a sunset kayaking trip Tuesday evening near Thunder Cove. When his empty vehicle was discovered at the beach access point Wednesday morning, alarm bells rang through the tight-knit coastal community.
The RCMP launched an immediate ground and water search, with Coast Guard vessels combing the waters where Thomas was last believed to have paddled. But for the Steele family, the official response, while professional, felt insufficient against the vastness of P.E.I.’s northern coastline.
“We know the currents here, we know where Thomas liked to paddle,” said Elizabeth Steele, the missing man’s sister. “Our family has been on these waters for generations.”
In a remarkable show of community solidarity, local fishermen diverted their vessels to join the search efforts. By Thursday morning, more than 20 private boats were meticulously tracking search patterns alongside official Coast Guard cutters.
According to RCMP Sergeant Mark Steeves, water conditions have complicated rescue efforts. “We’ve had shifting winds creating challenging surface conditions,” he explained. “Water temperatures this time of year are approximately 12 degrees Celsius, which presents significant survival concerns.”
What makes this search effort truly extraordinary is the Steele family’s decision to charter a private helicopter. Using funds pooled from family savings and rapid community donations through a hastily organized GoFundMe campaign, they’ve taken to the skies to supplement the official search.
The P.E.I. Ground Search and Rescue organization has deployed teams to comb beaches and cliff faces from Thunder Cove to Cavendish. Their coordinator, Janet MacPhee, praised the community response while urging safety. “We understand the family’s urgency, but we also need to ensure no one else becomes endangered during search operations.”
Thomas’s kayak, a distinctive yellow single-seater, was recovered Thursday morning near Rustico Island, approximately 11 kilometers east of his launch point. The discovery has provided searchers with crucial data about potential drift patterns.
“Finding the kayak gives us hope,” Cameron said, pointing to a detailed marine chart where search coordinators had marked tide patterns and wind directions. “It narrows our search area and tells us he might have made it some distance before encountering trouble.”
Weather records from Environment Canada show Tuesday evening had relatively calm conditions when Thomas launched, but a weather system moved through overnight, bringing 25 km/h winds and moderate chop to the area.
Thomas, a respiratory therapist at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Charlottetown, is described by colleagues as an experienced paddler who often used kayaking as a way to decompress after long hospital shifts. He regularly carried safety equipment, including a personal flotation device and waterproof phone case.
Provincial fisheries minister Jamie Fox visited the search command center Thursday afternoon, offering additional provincial resources. “When islanders are in trouble, we all respond,” Fox stated. “We’re making every government resource available to support this search operation.”
The family-chartered helicopter has allowed searchers to cover significantly more territory than would be possible from the water or shoreline alone. Pilot Michael Tremaine of Atlantic Aerial Services has donated additional flight hours beyond what the family contracted.
“From the air, we can spot things boats might miss,” Tremaine explained during a brief refueling stop. “We’re using thermal imaging equipment to detect any heat signature along the shoreline that might indicate someone had crawled to safety.”
Marine biologist Dr. Sarah Connors from UPEI has volunteered her expertise in local current patterns to help coordinate search efforts. “The North Shore has complex tidal interactions,” she noted. “Understanding these patterns can be crucial in predicting drift trajectories for both people and objects in the water.”
As darkness fell Thursday evening, Coast Guard officials announced searches would continue through the night using vessels equipped with searchlights and infrared technology. The family’s helicopter will resume aerial searches at first light Friday.
For the Steele family, the waiting is excruciating. “Thomas is strong, and he knows these waters,” Elizabeth said, watching as another search vessel returned to harbor. “We’re not giving up hope. Not today, not tomorrow.”
Local restaurants have been delivering food to the search command post, while area residents have offered accommodations for family members who’ve traveled from across the Maritimes to join the effort.
In the command center, maps are marked with grid patterns showing areas already searched and those still needing coverage. The methodical approach contrasts with the raw emotion evident on the faces of family members who alternate between active searching and anxious waiting.
As this community holds its collective breath, the search for Thomas Steele has transformed from a rescue operation into a powerful demonstration of island solidarity. For now, the family’s helicopter continues to trace the shoreline, a symbol of hope against darkening odds.
