Search underway for missing UBC professor last seen Wednesday on Salt Spring Island

Police, family and friends are concerned about a missing UBC professor who was last seen Wednesday on Salt Spring Island.

Salt Spring RCMP say Sinikka Gay Elliott left her home to run errands on Wednesday and has not been seen or heard from since. 

Police say they received a missing persons report at 2:15 p.m. the same day. 

RCMP, along with search and rescue, began their search later that night and at approximately 9:30 p.m. located Elliot's vehicle abandoned on Juniper Place Road.

Police told CBC News foul play is not suspected.

Following an overwhelming response from the community looking to help in the search, police are asking the public to stand down.

"Due to the terrain, they are only using specialized search and rescue members for the main search area, which again remains focused on the Mount Erskine search area," said Cpl. Chris Manseau, a spokesperson with the B.C. RCMP Communication Services.

"However, they [search and rescue] are asking anybody who wants to help in the search do so on their own properties or check in with their neighbours to help search those properties for this missing person."  

Elliot has been an associate professor with the sociology department at UBC since 2007.

"We hope she's found safe and sound. And, yeah, we're all very, very distressed, all of us, about her situation, her colleagues, her students," said Guy Stecklov, the head of the sociology department at UBC.

Stecklov says Elliot is a dear colleague and a dedicated mentor to her students. She is described as having a slim build, five feet three inches tall, with dark brown short hair.

She was last seen wearing a red sweater, jeans and brown boots. 

Anyone who might have any information on Elliot's whereabouts is asked to contact Salt Spring RCMP.