74-Year-Old Grandmother Reported Missing In Gardens, Joint SAR Team Intensify Search
JAKARTA - A 74-year-old grandmother was reported missing while in her garden in Kumbewaha Village, Siontapina District, Buton Regency, Southeast Sulawesi (Sultra). The joint SAR team continues to intensify search efforts until the fifth day.
The head of the Kendari Basarnas, Aminuddin PS, in his statement in Kendari, Sunday (27/4), explained that the victim named Wa Soeladi had been declared missing for five days. To speed up the search, the team was divided into two groups.
One team used a thermal drone to scan the area from the air, while the other team conducted a ground sweep as well as disseminate information to residents in Sumber Sari Village and Labuandiri Village up to a radius of seven kilometers.
According to Aminuddin, the report on the loss of victims was first received on Wednesday (23/4) at around 21.30 WITA from the family. Responding to the report, the Baubau SAR Post Rescue Team immediately moved to the location at 21.40 WITA to carry out rescue operations.
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"This operation involved many parties, including the Operations Staff of the Kendari Basarnas, Baubau SAR Post, Sampoabalo Police, village officials, Babinsa from Sumber Sari and Kartini Village, PMI Baubau, as well as the support of the community and the families of the victims," he said.
Aminuddin added, based on the information gathered, the victim and her husband had been in the garden since Saturday (12/4). On April 23, 2025, at around 06.30 WITA, the two had gone to Sumber Sari Village to buy rice. On the way back to the garden, the victim's husband walked first, leaving the victim who was walking behind.
However, until 10:00 WITA, the victim never arrived in the garden. The victim's husband then tried to find his wife along the way, but the results were nil. The incident was then reported to the family and local community to jointly conduct a search before involving Basarnas.
Currently, the search continues to be carried out intensively in the hope that the victim will soon be found safe.