Dementia Elderly Shivering in Diapers Reunited with Family Within 30 Minutes of Report

Police: "We will continue to strive for public safety"

A man in his 70s with dementia, who was shivering in the freezing cold wearing only a thin top and a diaper, was safely returned to his family with the help of citizens and the police.

Yonhap News reported on the 14th the story of Mr. A, a man in his 70s, as conveyed by the Ganghwa Police Station in Incheon. Earlier, at around 7:12 p.m. on March 13, a 112 emergency call was received reporting "an elderly person with dementia is shivering" in a residential area of Ganghwa-gun, Incheon.

[Photo by Incheon Police Agency/ Yonhap News]

Quickly dispatched officers Jeon Jeong-hyun and Jeong Hee-young from the Simdo District Unit of Ganghwa Police Station arrived at a villa following the guidance of the caller standing on a nearby road. Mr. A was crouched down wearing only a thin top and a diaper.

Due to the subzero temperatures at the time, Mr. A was reported to be shivering so severely that his face had turned blue from the cold. Concerned about hypothermia, the officers placed him in the patrol car and turned on the heater.

Mr. A then received simple emergency care such as a blood pressure check from the 119 ambulance that arrived shortly after. The officers supported the elderly man and took him to the district unit, where they used a fingerprint recognition system to identify his personal information in order to find his family.

Mr. A’s family rushed to the district unit around 7:50 p.m. that day, expressing their gratitude to the officers by saying, “Thank you for taking care of our father safely.” It was determined that Mr. A had left the house and stayed in a corner of the building while his family was briefly out.

Thanks to the prompt report by a citizen and the swift response by the police, Mr. A was reunited with his family within about 30 minutes of the report. Officer Jeon said, “I am relieved that the elderly man returned home safely without injury,” and added, “We will continue to work hard for the safety of the public.”

Meanwhile, according to the Central Dementia Center under the Ministry of Health and Welfare, as of 2022, the elderly population aged 65 and over was approximately 8.97 million. Among them, the number of dementia patients in 2022 was 924,870.