A dude who went missing during the NSW floods has been found, bringing a glimmer of hope in the midst of the chaos that has seen five people kick the bucket and 50,000 folks stuck in the state. Police peeps confirmed that a 49-year-old dude who vanished on Wednesday night has been located all safe and sound. The alarm bells rang when the guy didn’t make it back home while strolling near a flooded road at Nymboida, around 40km south of Grafton.
After a search mission by emergency services on Wednesday night and the following day turned up zilch, the cops dropped the bombshell this evening that the missing man was found at a property in Kangaroo Creek, 12 kilometers away from where he was last spotted. The police confirmed that the dude was doing A-OK and was “in good spirits.” However, the cops also dropped the bomb that a fifth person was found kicking the bucket in the flood zone. The octogenarian dude couldn’t be reached after a shed fire was reported on Wednesday at a property at Cooplacurripa, 50 kilometers northwest of Taree.
The emergency services couldn’t reach the property via road or air due to the floods, but once they finally got there today, they discovered the guy’s body in a burnt-out vehicle inside the shed. Forensics will be checking out the scene, with a report in the works for the coroner. On another note, the family of one of the other flood victims is throwing shade at the police story surrounding her demise. Pauline Fitzsimons, 58, got swept away to her death at Dorrigo, west of Coffs Harbour, on Wednesday night after driving through floodwaters. The news was confirmed by the cops, who claimed she was traveling in convoy with an officer who turned back while she chose to keep going.
Her fam released a statement today, calling out the police response. “He gave his mobile number to her, we assume, for her to call should she be in danger.” She rang him up 20 minutes later in a panic, saying she was drowning. The family isn’t buying the idea that their mom was a reckless driver. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who was in the disaster zone today, was tight-lipped about the incident, offering condolences to the woman’s loved ones.