Hong Kong man, 62, found safe on Stanley hillside after citywide search hours before No 8 typhoon warning took effect

A 62-year-old Hong Kong man who sparked a citywide search was found safe on a hillside in Stanley and airlifted to hospital on Thursday night, hours before a No 8 typhoon signal went into effect.

The man went missing after he left the infirmary ward at Cheshire Home, a care facility run by the Hospital Authority, in Chung Hom Kok during lunchtime on the same day without telling anyone.

Police began investigating the 62-year-old’s whereabouts after receiving a report at 1.30pm. Officers then checked security camera footage and discovered the man was last seen in Stanley.

The force on Friday said rural patrol officers from the Hong Kong Island emergency unit discovered the man on a hillside near Stanley Fort off Wong Ma Kok Road at around 11pm.

“The man was found with minor abrasions. He was airlifted by a Government Flying Service helicopter to Ruttonjee Hospital for treatment,” police said.

The Hong Kong Observatory issued the No 8 typhoon signal at 2.40am on Friday as Super Typhoon Saola, which is named after a rare and protected horned mammal discovered in Vietnam, edged closer to the city.

In a separate case, authorities suspended search and rescue efforts for hiker Ning Kwok-leung on Thursday night.

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The 57-year-old left his home on Wednesday last week to go on a solo hike in Ma On Shan Country and was reported missing by his family the same day. Ning struggled to speak in a call to emergency hotline officers on Saturday.

The Fire Services Department said the search and rescue operation was suspended until weather conditions improved, adding it would continue to liaise with the missing man’s family.