Over 50 people look for missing man, 81, find him 12 hours later 10km away from last location in Yishun
:')Fiona Tan |
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What was supposed to be a one-hour trip turned into an over 12-hour trek for an 81-year-old man in Singapore who could not find his way home.
After he failed to return home that night, his family members grew worried and informed Nee Soon Group Representation Constituency (GRC) Member of Parliament (MP) Faishal Ibrahim that the elderly man had gone missing.
Over 50 volunteers, consisting of individuals from Nee Soon Town Council, People's Association and the police, promptly sprung into action to look for the elderly man.
They eventually found the elderly man at Tagore Lane, more than 10km away from the location where he was last seen.
Last seen at around 7pm
81-year-old Lee Kian Huat left his house at Block 726 Yishun Street 71 on Oct. 10, 2023 evening to collect a ComCare welfare food pack from Block 609 Yishun Street 61, a Nee Soon Town Council spokesperson told Mothership.
His wife was usually the one who made the trip to collect the food, but was still on the mend from fracturing her arm.
Although Lee usually does not step out of his house, he decided to collect the food on his wife's behalf.
A volunteer who spoke with Lee said the elderly man left Block 609 with his food at around 7pm.
According to Google Maps, the journey to and fro both locations should take individuals around an hour on foot, so Lee was supposed to be home by around 8pm that evening.
However, he did not return home after collecting the food that night.
To make matters worse, his family members could not contact Lee as he did not have his phone with him. Lee only had his ID and some cash.
Over 50 volunteers searched for Lee
Extremely worried, Lee's son-in-law Eddie Teo reached out to Faishal to seek assistance on Oct. 11 morning.
Teo wrote in his Facebook post that Faishal "replied instantly" and "swiftly swung into action".
"He gathered information, made a house visit to my in-law’s place, and activated his team."
According to the Nee Soon Town Council spokesperson, more than 50 volunteers were activated to look for Lee.
Faishal also contacted Lee's daughter to assure her that volunteers are keeping a lookout for her father.
Some of these volunteers made a trip to Lee's home to visit his wife, console her and update her on the efforts to search for Lee, Faishal wrote in his Facebook post.
Spotted 10km away from last location
The volunteers spread out and looked for Lee in various parts of Nee Soon, hitting up the usual spots such as the hospital, but to no avail.
An individual eventually spotted Lee at Tagore Lane, some 10km away from where he was last seen at Block 609 Yishun Street 61.
He had apparently lost his way, and in his panic, strayed further and further away from his home.
The individual, as well as a community volunteer, eventually helped Lee return home at around 12pm, more than 12 hours after he left his house the previous evening on Oct. 10.
Grateful, Teo thanked Faishal and his Nee Soon team for their efforts.
Faishal also expressed his gratitude to all the volunteers: "Thanks to the collective effort from our volunteers, residents and also the police, we managed to find him around noon time. More important, he was well and safe!"
