Footprint found but time running out as search for missing four-year-old boy Gus continues in South Australia

Lauren Thomson
7NEWS
The search for August Lamont has found a footprint

A footprint believed to belong to missing four-year-old boy August “Gus” Lamont has sparked fresh hope in the desperate search which now entering its fifth day — but police warn time is running out.

The print was discovered on Tuesday night, just 500m from where the little boy was last seen playing outside his family’s remote sheep station, 40km south of Yunta in South Australia’s Mid North region.

The alarm was raised just after 5pm on Saturday, sparking a massive search across the isolated 60sqkm property surrounded by outback-like conditions and dense scrub.

Sign up to The Nightly's newsletters.

Get the first look at the digital newspaper, curated daily stories and breaking headlines delivered to your inbox.

Email Us
By continuing you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.

“We’re buoyed by that fact,” Superintendent Mark Syrus said in confirming the footprint matched the boots Gus was wearing when he vanished.

Forty police cadets have travelled from Adelaide to join the search, which now includes a specialist tracker with deep ties to the land.

The cadets join more than 100 personnel including police officers, SES crews and volunteers, plus drones, helicopters, dogs, horses, police divers and aircraft scouring the vast outback property.

But despite the breakthrough, the reality is grim with Gus being without food or water for days.

Crews from every emergency service unit are on site at Yunta in efforts to help find August Lamont.
Crews from every emergency service unit are on site at Yunta in efforts to help find August Lamont. Credit: SAPOL

“Our priority has always been to find Gus alive,” Syrus said.

“But he’s been gone for 86 hours — no water, no food, no shelter. The chance of finding him alive is really diminishing every minute.”

Police have spoken with Gus’s family to prepare them for the possibility he may not survive.

“We always remain hopeful that Gus is a tough little country lad, curled up under a bush somewhere — and we’ll find him today,” Syrus said.

Gus is Caucasian with long blond curly hair. He was last seen wearing a grey sun hat, cobalt blue long-sleeve shirt with a yellow Minion on the front, light grey pants and boots.

Gus was last seen a Minion long sleeved T-shirt before he went missing on Saturday.
Gus was last seen a Minion long sleeved T-shirt before he went missing on Saturday. Credit: SAPOL

Originally published on 7NEWS

Latest Edition

The Nightly cover for 01-10-2025

Latest Edition

Edition Edition 1 October 20251 October 2025

Smaller deposits for pricier homes: How Labor’s new buying scheme will kill the great Australian dream.