The Tribune

By DENISE MAYCOCK

Tribune Freeport Reporter

dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

AFTER a harrowing two days for her family, 78-year-old Merlyn Cooper of Grand Bahama was found safe in Miami and has been reunited with her family.

The elderly woman suffers from dementia, and had wandered away from her family at the Miami International Airport on Sunday afternoon.

She was discovered in an area near the airport on Tuesday morning after being missing for more than 36 hours.

Her daughter Astrid Cooper told The Tribune she was relieved when they received a call that their mother had been found. The elderly woman was a bit shaken, but “in good health,” Ms Cooper said.

According to Ms Cooper, someone noticed that her mother needed assistance and contacted Miami Police.

“We are very relieved and thankful, and we are glad that we were able to find her," she said.

"She is just a little shaken up and dehydrated. So, we are working on getting her rehydrated and some rest before we come home.”

Ms Cooper continued: “A shop owner found her and realised she was not okay, and they called the police. The police picked her up and they had a nurse check her out and made sure she was okay.”

A missing person’s report was filed with the Miami-Dade Police Department on Sunday. An official missing person’s flyer with a photo of Ms Cooper was released on Monday by police. The Coopers also posted a photograph of their mother on social media to spread the word.

Ms Cooper thanked everyone who called and offered support and shared the message on social media.

Consul Chayla Cartwright, of the Bahamas Consulate General in Miami, said she was pleased that Ms Cooper had been found and is now back safe with her family.

She explained that police Liaison at the Consulate Chief Superintendent Hylton Cash was contacted and notified by local authorities about a Bahamian citizen who was reported missing.

Supt Cash was in constant contact with Cooper’s daughters providing them with updates and getting a necessary plan together to try to find her, said Consul Cartwright, who met with the family at the airport on Monday. She commended local authorities in an interview with The Tribune on Tuesday.

“We wanted to be there for them to provide moral support and assist with anything they may have needed,” she explained.

Ms Cartwright added: “This morning detectives and local officers were on it, and they had a plan of action which I believe led to finding her.”