VANCOUVER - A human foot has washed up on another West Coast beach, but this time in Washington state.
The right foot was found by a tourist on Whidbey Island, about 50 kilometres north of Seattle, on Friday morning.
"Based on the size, we're estimating it belongs to either a female or a juvenile," Island County Sheriff's Office spokesman Det. Ed Wallace said in an interview. "Based on the condition, we're estimating it's been in the water less than two months."
He said the foot was found without a shoe or a sock, and the tourist was quite startled by the discovery.
Wallace said based on the information police have gathered, they don't believe the foot matches any missing persons cases in the area.
Officers plan to reach out to surrounding jurisdictions, including B.C., to see if any of their cases might fit.
Seven feet have been found on B.C. shores since August 2007.
The most recent discovery was last October in Richmond. That foot was linked to a Vancouver-area man who had been reported missing in January 2008.
One other foot found in B.C. has also been identified. It belonged to a man thought to have committed suicide.
RCMP have said all of the feet separated from the bodies naturally in the water and foul play is not suspected in any of the cases.
The missing feet mystery brought international attention to B.C., as people around the world speculated on what could be causing the feet to turn up.
One other foot washed up in Washington state in August 2008.
Wallace said police on Whidbey Island are used to bodies washing up on shore, but not individual feet.
"Based on where we sit in the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the currents, we've had complete bodies wash up before, partial bodies wash up before, we're just in that pathway," he said.
He said the foot is almost complete, though there are a few bones missing from the toes.
"There's no trauma to it, it does not look like it's been severed," he said.
Wallace stressed the investigation is still early and officers are not ruling anything out.
