Police praise actions of Wainuiomata man in search last night

Police are praising the actions of a member of the public, who did the right thing when he came across a woman, reported missing to Police late last night.

Police were notified around 11pm that a Wainuiomata woman aged 56, with severe medical conditions had gone missing from her home.

Police Operations Manager Inspector Mike Wright says a search began shortly after, involving Police members of Search and Rescue (SAR), Wainuiomata Police and local community patrols, headed by Sergeant Jo Holden of SAR.

“We spent the best part of five hours searching for this woman in freezing temperatures until we got a call just before 4am that a kind member of the public had located the missing woman about 1.5 kilometres from her home.”

“A young local man was heading home from work and noticed the woman sitting beside the road. He made the right decision to stop and help and we want to publicly thank him for his actions.”

Inspector Wright says the man took the woman to the local service station and explained the situation before contacting Police.

“The woman was in a disorientated and confused state and was pleased to be returned safely to her family.”

Mike Wright says this young man’s choice to stop and help averted what could have been a tragedy. Police were actively searching at the time but this young man happened to be in the right place at the right time.