![Image](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/05/23/07/71266281-12113977-Police_will_search_the_reservoir_in_southern_Portugal_for_Madele-a-1_1684823052089.jpg)
Detectives investigating the disappearance of Madeleine McCann took 'a number of bags' away from a remote Algarve reservoir where they are focusing on four areas of interest in their search for signs of the missing British girl.
The area around the Barragem do Arade reservoir was locked down overnight, and police divers entered the water early on Tuesday at the site found about 30 miles from Praia da Luz, where Madeleine went missing in 2007.
The first major search for Madeleine in nine years comes after German police discovered photos of prime suspect Christian Brueckner at his self-described 'little paradise' in the Portuguese region, it is understood.
About 20 officers with rakes and hoe-like tools spread out in a line and began poking and raking the soil close to the Arade dam today, while police also used a drone to scan the area from above and searched with sniffer dogs on both sides of the water.
Footage from the site showed officers taking bags away from the reservoir this afternoon but it was not clear what was inside them. One video showed an officer picking up a bag from a colleague as they drove by in a black Ford SUV.
The BBC reports that 'a number of bags' were taken away today and that investigators are predominantly focusing on four areas of the reservoir this week.
It follows excavations starting this morning, with police officers pictured digging as they search for evidence to link the toddler's disappearance to the German convict.
According to Portuguese outlet Correio da Manha, excavations started at around 11am local time, and were being carried out at two different spots around the water's edge.
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