Australia AUSTRALIA - 4YO AUGUST (GUS) Missing from rural family home in Outback, Yunta, South Australia, 27th Sept 2025

[HoneyBunOne]

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I’ve been looking at this picture of the sand pile. Is it just me or does the bit at the front look like some has slid down or been disturbed? If gus was digging and the sand closed on top of him, would the dogs track him under sand? Did the police dig through the sand I wonder?

I agree. This sand pile has not been leveled to ensure he didn't fall in. The vegetation growing around the sides and top suggest it's been there for a long time, but the front shows signs of disturbance. It certainly looks big enough to contain a 4 year old. I wonder how hard and compacted it is?

 

[BreakingNews]

I agree. This sand pile has not been leveled to ensure he didn't fall in. The vegetation growing around the sides and top suggest it's been there for a long time, but the front shows signs of disturbance. It certainly looks big enough to contain a 4 year old. I wonder how hard and compacted it is?

We don't know when the photo was taken. Hopefully the sand has been levelled by now and searched thoroughly.

 

[Dotta]

Bush kids don't need the things city kids need.

All kids need diverse play experiences and a safe place.
I wouldn't divide children into "bush and city kids".
They have the same needs.
Like the environment to explore, learn, and grow.
And feel safe.

JMO

 

[HoneyBunOne]

We don't know when the photo was taken. Hopefully the sand has been levelled by now and searched thoroughly.

True, but I think it's safe to say the search had already begun when this photo was both taken and released.

 

[jypsijemini]

I’m still stuck on Gus being left alone for 30 minutes. A four year old left unchecked for half an hour isn’t just unsupervised, they are unprotected. Bush kid or city kid, it doesn’t matter. Toddlers don’t need thirty minutes to vanish. They need two. If this is correct, it’s indefensible.

It makes me wonder how often he spent time at his grandparents place?

• Did he live there permanently?
• Have his grandparents always farmed/lived rurally?
• What age group do his grandparents belong to?

Sometimes these folk from older, farm-hardened generations are lulled into a sense of "she'll be right" based on their own upbringing and parenthood - that they were raised on farms, and so were their own children, and no one ever went missing. That children Gus' age were always safe and free to roam to their hearts content because they always came home again.

He's been described by a "family member" as 1. A "good walker"; 2. "shy but adventurous"; and 3. never before wandered far or left family property previously - but if I'm not misunderstood, this doesn't confirm that Gus actually lived at the property he disappeared from.

I wonder if he was very familiar with the property at all...

MOO

 

[LadyL]

Hi LadyL, I took a screen shot of the video so it is a bit strange. The whole video shows the 2 kangaroos hopping away.

And the Dog Fence is to keep dingos (wild dogs) out. It is a famous fence in Australia. The Australian Government employ Rangers whose full time job is to constantly travel along the Dog Fence to make sure it is in good order. I’ve met a few of these Rangers, and they have got fabulous outback tales to tell.


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“There is however a 600km dog-proof border fence along the NSW, Qld and SA borders.

The fence is crucial in keeping dingoes and wild dogs out of sheep, goat, and cattle grazing areas in western NSW according to the NSW Government website.

In 2023 a 32km extension to the NSW Border Wild Dog Fence closed the existing gap with the SA dog fence.”

Where are the wild dog fences and are they working? - Sheep Central

STATE and federal governments have spent millions of dollars on wild dog fencing around Australia, but has it made a difference? ..Read More

www.sheepcentral.com

wow thank you for the description as I was thinking something totally different

 

[jypsijemini]

Also, the way the property has been described in relation to Gus seems vague to me.

"Family property."

I haven't seen it described as "his home" or "his grandparent's home". Just "the family property".

Just throwing my 2c out here, but to me, that could mean any property related to the family. Maybe Gus AND the grandparent/s were just visiting the property. Maybe it belonged to an uncle or an aunty of Gus'...

JMO.

 

[Leafy]

Also, the way the property has been described in relation to Gus seems vague to me.

"Family property."

I haven't seen it described as "his home" or "his grandparent's home". Just "the family property".

Just throwing my 2c out here, but to me, that could mean any property related to the family. Maybe Gus AND the grandparent/s were just visiting the property. Maybe it belonged to an uncle or an aunty of Gus'...

JMO.

In relation to finding the footprint they said he lives there. That’s why it could be an old print.

 

[SouthAussie]

Today's Advertiser says that there is a tracker (and former police officer) called Aaron Stewart who believes that there is still a good chance to find Gus - to give his family closure. And he is ready to step in.

Aaron is a a Ngarabunna man (indigenous, for our overseas members).

He says that he truly thinks that Gus has not gone far.

https://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/south-australia/search-for-missing-4yearold-boy-gus-lamont-near-yunta-in-outback-sa-scaled-back/news-story/12c43101ab44e0371728513b5be78cfc?amp

 

[SouthAussie]

The isolated homestead ..... is only reachable by dirt roads

The arid scrubland is laced with winding sandy tracks, which reveal hidden crevices and dry creek beds at almost every turn.

SA Police Commissioner Grant Stevens ... there were "lots of places a small child might find themselves which would be hard for us to identify as easily as people may think".

Why the search for a missing 4yo in SA's outback was so challenging

A week of large-scale land and air searches have found no clues leading to the whereabouts of four-year-old Gus in outback South Australia.

www.abc.net.au

 

[Scooby-Doo]

You have to contemplate how far a four-year-old could actually travel on foot since the time he was last seen. Then look at the physical limitations of the area.

Was it only 30 minutes or longer? The child was unsupervised?

He seemed to be aware of the property, so police would be looking at areas where he could be attracted to or was an area he knew of and had travelled there before

The location is generally quite flat and not thickly or densely populated, mostly an open area, with not many places he could hide or be hidden within the small radius he possibly could have walked away.

I think personally, he would have been located by now if he were still there

 

[sunspun]

You have to contemplate how far a four-year-old could actually travel on foot since the time he was last seen. Then look at the physical limitations of the area.

Was it only 30 minutes or longer? The child was unsupervised?

He seemed to be aware of the property, so police would be looking at areas where he could be attracted to or was an area he knew of and had travelled there before

The location is generally quite flat and not thickly or densely populated, mostly an open area, with not many places he could hide or be hidden within the small radius he possibly could have walked away.

I think personally, he would have been located by now if he were still there

I wonder if it's possible we/they don't actually know an accurate time that he was last seen. We think we know he was last seen about 5pm, IIRC, and noticed not where he was expected to be about a half hour later. Maybe that's not correct. Maybe there was a much longer period of time from when he was last seen to when he was nowhere to be found.

 

[sapphire blue]

You have to contemplate how far a four-year-old could actually travel on foot since the time he was last seen. Then look at the physical limitations of the area.

Was it only 30 minutes or longer? The child was unsupervised?

He seemed to be aware of the property, so police would be looking at areas where he could be attracted to or was an area he knew of and had travelled there before

The location is generally quite flat and not thickly or densely populated, mostly an open area, with not many places he could hide or be hidden within the small radius he possibly could have walked away.

I think personally, he would have been located by now if he were still there

The isolated homestead ..... is only reachable by dirt roads

The arid scrubland is laced with winding sandy tracks, which reveal hidden crevices and dry creek beds at almost every turn.

SA Police Commissioner Grant Stevens ... there were "lots of places a small child might find themselves which would be hard for us to identify as easily as people may think".

Why the search for a missing 4yo in SA's outback was so challenging

A week of large-scale land and air searches have found no clues leading to the whereabouts of four-year-old Gus in outback South Australia.

www.abc.net.au

The Police commissioners comment is pertinent

 

[BreakingNews]

All kids need diverse play experiences and a safe place.
I wouldn't divide children into "bush and city kids".
They have the same needs.
Like the environment to explore, learn, and grow.
And feel safe.

JMO

I agree, however Bush kids get those same learning opportunities only in a totally different environment. What might seem safe in the outback, may not be the same in a city. I doubt there would be many helicopter parents living on huge properties. MOO and from experience.

 

[BreakingNews]

Also, the way the property has been described in relation to Gus seems vague to me.

"Family property."

I haven't seen it described as "his home" or "his grandparent's home". Just "the family property".

Just throwing my 2c out here, but to me, that could mean any property related to the family. Maybe Gus AND the grandparent/s were just visiting the property. Maybe it belonged to an uncle or an aunty of Gus'...

JMO.

I believe that is how these properties are described. 5th generation of sheep farming. The Family Property makes perfect sense.

 

[kiwi50]

It makes me wonder how often he spent time at his grandparents place?

• Did he live there permanently?
• Have his grandparents always farmed/lived rurally?
• What age group do his grandparents belong to?

Sometimes these folk from older, farm-hardened generations are lulled into a sense of "she'll be right" based on their own upbringing and parenthood - that they were raised on farms, and so were their own children, and no one ever went missing. That children Gus' age were always safe and free to roam to their hearts content because they always came home again.

He's been described by a "family member" as 1. A "good walker"; 2. "shy but adventurous"; and 3. never before wandered far or left family property previously - but if I'm not misunderstood, this doesn't confirm that Gus actually lived at the property he disappeared from.

I wonder if he was very familiar with the property at all...

MOO

I have the same questions as you plus more, did his parents live there, was there a grandfather.?
It still bothers me that they didnt want to release a photo for days.Why is it all so
secret, basically all we know is a child went missing,his grandmother saw him at 5 pm and that’s about all.
How many people were searching for him when the police arrived?
Under the circumstances three hours seems a long time to wait to call the police, with darkness falling, and not as if he had gone to neighbours or out on the street.

 

[HoneyBunOne]

Also, the way the property has been described in relation to Gus seems vague to me.

"Family property."

I haven't seen it described as "his home" or "his grandparent's home". Just "the family property".

Just throwing my 2c out here, but to me, that could mean any property related to the family. Maybe Gus AND the grandparent/s were just visiting the property. Maybe it belonged to an uncle or an aunty of Gus'...

JMO.

"Family property" seems like a pretty common way of phrasing it. In many outback areas families have lived on the same piece of land for generations, sometimes multi generational living too. The grand or great grand parents may typically be the owners on paper, but their kids, grandkids and great grand kids may also live there. The next generation may own the land when the older ones pass, or at least take over the bulk of the working of the farm when they older ones become a little more frail. I(t's a lot more blended than your usual city living.

 

[HoneyBunOne]

I have the same questions as you plus more, did his parents live there, was there a grandfather.?
It still bothers me that they didnt want to release a photo for days.Why is it all so
secret, basically all we know is a child went missing,his grandmother saw him at 5 pm and that’s about all.
How many people were searching for him when the police arrived?
Under the circumstances three hours seems a long time to wait to call the police, with darkness falling, and not as if he had gone to neighbours or out on the street.

BBM
Bear in mind, this is an expansive property, with lots of out buildings and "stuff" lying around. We know at least Grandma was home when he went missing, but she may have been alone. There's been no mention of anyone else home at the time, not to say they weren't though. It takes time to search the house, all the many and varied out buildings, in/around/behind all the bits and pieces, not to mention then searching around the land itself. 3 hours in an isolated property like this is not the same as 3 hours in a family home on a 500 square metre block in the suburbs. It's just not, because the perceived dangers of city living just don't exist on a remote property. Not to say there aren't other dangers, just not the same nefarious ones.

 

[SouthAussie]

"Family property" seems like a pretty common way of phrasing it. In many outback areas families have lived on the same piece of land for generations, sometimes multi generational living too. The grand or great grand parents may typically be the owners on paper, but their kids, grandkids and great grand kids may also live there. The next generation may own the land when the older ones pass, or at least take over the bulk of the working of the farm when they older ones become a little more frail. I(t's a lot more blended than your usual city living.

Just to add, there is an Advertiser article here about who owns pastoral or agricultural land in SA (dated Aug 2024) ... and it refers to many families as owning the properties. And speaks of how many generations from those families that have worked their pastoral lands.

Eg: Cousins family, McBride family, Mitolo family, Cooper family, Handbury family (and more).

https://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/south-australia/biggest-land-barons-meet-the-people-and-companies-behind-south-australias-largest-farms/news-story/81f275660f682167c891db5513f3e0cb?amp

 

[Rocket333]

Police said that they didn't have a direction and had to cover a 360-degree angle.

The road is only 300 metres from the house, which means Gus could have reached it on foot in just a few minutes. There were no reported signs of struggle or distress, so it’s possible he walked off voluntarily. Maybe he was drawn by an animal, a wandering sheep, a sudden noise, or someone or something familiar.

Police did say that the property is very isolated and you have to go through six gates to actually get to the station.

When evening fell, the house would have been lit up and the adults were out searching and calling his name for hours. If he was conscious, mobile, and still nearby, he should’ve seen the lights or heard the voices and come back or responded.

Yet Gus didn’t respond or return, because he couldn’t.