75-year-old Irish woman found alive after going missing during pilgrimage to Lourdes
Darragh Mc Donagh
A 75-year-old disabled Irish woman who went missing during a pilgrimage to Lourdes has been found alive by French emergency services.
The woman, who had travelled with a group from the Diocese of Derry, disappeared on Sunday evening and was reported missing by pilgrimage organisers on Monday morning.
There was considerable concern over the disappearance because the woman uses a walking frame and weather warnings have been issued in that region of France amid a record-breaking heatwave.
A major search operation was launched and the woman's walking frame was discovered on the side of the road near the commune of Lugagnan.
She was found by firefighters 10 metres below a roadway nearby. French police believe that she crossed the Gave de Pau river, as she was discovered in a steep, inaccessible area on the opposite bank.
The woman had sustained a hip injury and was transferred to hospital, where she received treatment for injuries that are not believed to be life-threatening.
French police credited a recently introduced text alert system for the location of the Irish woman, according to media outlet Dépeche.
A message regarding her disappearance was circulated by police to shopkeepers, taxi drivers, train operators, and other professionals. A witness came forward shortly afterwards.
“We were told that a document belonging to the missing woman was found on the outskirts of Lourdes on a road towards Argeles-Gazost,” said a police spokesperson.
The search then focused on that area, and police officers on mountain bike patrol spotted her walking frame on the side of the road near Lugagnan.
“They then inspected the surrounding area, particularly the banks of the Gace,” they added.
“She clearly crossed the Gave since she was on the other side, in a steep and difficult-to-access area.”
The woman was rescued by firefighters and was transported by ambulance to a hospital in Lourdes, according to the French media outlet.
