The search for a landfill site supervisor - missing overnight - has stepped up a notch with helicopters joining in the search which was resumed this morning after police were forced to call off their hunt at Mallusk late last night.

They are hunting for David Leyland, 23, who works at Biffo Waste site in Mallusk and who was last seen beside machinery at about 2pm on Thursday.

The hazardous conditions in the waterlogged 'dump' meant the search - which started on Thursday night - had soon to be called off because of possible slippage from the huge piles of rubbish as well as water lying from the recent flooding.

Speaking on BBC Radio Ulster this morning, Ken Leyland, the brother of the missing man, said it would be out of character for David to leave the site.

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"David's worked there since he was 17 years old, he's now 23 - he's site supervisor," he said.

"They work six days a week and he's always been there on site, he's never late for work, he's the most reliable person there.

"His locker was full of his clothes, his trainers, his jacket, his bag, his keys."

Confirming that the search had to be halted, a police spokesperson said: "Due to conditions being extremely hazardous in the dark, a decision was made in consultation with all other agencies involved to resume search this morning."

The Fire Service and Health and Safety Executive are liaising with the police.

The search recalls a similar event in 2006 - when a search for a missing man ended in tragedy - with the discovery of the body of a young man at a landfill site in North Belfast.

Police were called to the Dargan Cresent area of the city following the discovery of the body in January that year.

At the time, detectives said they were no longer treating the 19-year-old man's death as suspicious.

See: Man's body discovered at landfill site

(BMcC)