Very late in the evening, LANCON called out the team for an urgent search regarding a elderly walker missing in the Darwen area. In temperatures hovering around zero, and with conditions of light snow flurries, 18 team members and our search dog responded very quickly to the search control at Darwen Police station, joining major LANCON divisional resources, including a search manager and a police dog unit. The search commenced in the early hours of Wednesday 2nd March, centred in the area of Sunnyhurst Woods and Earnsdale. The search had a very happy conclusion for all involved when the elderly gentleman concerned was found by a Bolton search party during its deployment.

The man who had left home at 15:30, and had been reported missing to Police at 20:00, was seemingly non the worse for his late night ramble, and was quickly reunited with his anxious wife and family friends. Often the team has to deal with a tragic outcome on searches of this nature (as do the Police) so it was a particularly happy mood that was present in Darwen Police Station in the small hours of this morning. Our Team Leader, Garry Rhodes, commented on the excellent support offered by LANCON and the Police resources put into the search (the endless cups of tea also kept everyone happy).