A missing elderly man in Newport was found in just over an hour last night thanks to the efforts of locals.
The man in his 80s had gone missing not long before 9 o’clock and within minutes up to 100 local people had begun searching the area for him.
Nenagh Gardaí and Killaloe Coast Guard unit assisted, while Rescue 115 were on standby.
However, the man was thankfully located just before 10pm.
Damien Madden of Killaloe Coast Guard has told Tipp FM News this morning that the effort from locals was highly commendable:
“By the time we got on scene, local residents had rallied together and already started doing the local area where he was last seen. It was a massive turnout from the local people of Newport and they definitely have to be commended for their response.
“I know the local GAA teams and things like that, they put out [a message] in WhatsApp groups to alert people that this person had gone missing. So by the time we got there, a massive area had already been searched and thankfully, just a short time after, we were informed that he was found.”
The man had sustained minor injuries to his leg while he had been attempting to climb over a gate into a field.
Damien says they were not serious though and he was treated at the scene:
“When we got on scene he was already being assessed and treated so it was a fantastic outcome.
“It is great to see communities coming together and search teams like ourselves coming in and working with communities, working with the Gardaí.
“There’s search teams all over the country like coast guard units that do land searches as well and I suppose this year has been very challenging for especially voluntary units that are trying to fundraise and stuff like that.
“But you know, when incidents happen like last night and you see the way search and rescue units operate and the work that they do, it’s fantastic.”
