With MH370 Debris Search Ending, Victims' Families Ask Mauritians To Watch For Plane Wreckage

As the formal search for debris from the missing Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 continued to wind down this week, family members of the victims asked people in Mauritius to be extra vigilant in looking for wreckage on their beaches. Reuters reported Wednesday that a group of MH370 passengers' relatives held a news conference on the Indian Ocean island to beg residents and tourists to keep an eye out for items that may wash up on shore.

"We don't know how many pieces are out there and lost forever because people are not aware," said Grace Nathan, whose mom — along with the other 238 people on board the plane when it disappeared — is presumed dead.

MH370, a Boeing 777 en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing, vanished in March 2014. It's thought to have crashed, but the plane has never been found. An exhaustive sweep of the Indian Ocean floor has turned up little evidence, causing authorities to announce they'll be suspending the hunt for debris in January unless new information comes to light.

Frustrated by the lack of results from the official search, MH370 next-of-kin have recently taken matters into their own hands. They launched an independent search in Madagascar and then traveled to Mauritius to raise awareness about the plane and look into setting up an incentive system to reward locals who turn in debris, according to a news release.

On Twitter, the next-of-kin organization Voice 370 wrote that its members met with police, divers, hotel owners and reef conservationists, among others, Wednesday in Mauritius.

"After the press conference, several local people proceeded to inform us that they want to help and do not want anything in return," Voice 370 tweeted.

Although the formal search hasn't made progress in finding the plane, amateurs have — especially in Mauritius. In October, Malaysian authorities confirmed that a wing part found there in May was from MH370, USA Today reported. A part number on the wrecked wing connected the debris to MH370.