CHONBURI — 13 May 2026, more than 50 villagers and officials joined an overnight search for a 54-year-old man with a neurological condition who wandered away from his home before being found exhausted but safe in a forested area after a thermal drone detected his location.
Rescue workers from Sawanghet Thung Hiang Rescue Unit were notified at about 20:00 on Tuesday that the man had gone missing behind Wat Krabok Khu in Moo 5, Tha Bun Mi subdistrict, Ko Chan district, Chonburi.
Relatives said the man disappeared from his home at about 18:00. Family members initially searched for him but could not locate him, prompting them to alert local authorities and rescue teams.
Ms. Janjira Thongthanom, village head of Tha Bun Mi subdistrict, said local officials, village leaders, a rapid response unit from the Department of National Parks, rescue workers and villagers mobilised to search dense forest behind the community.
During the operation, officials deployed a thermal-imaging drone, which detected a heat signature near a pond about 600 m from the man’s home. A ground search team later reached the area and found him at about 00:30 on Wednesday in an exhausted condition but unharmed.
Relatives and search teams expressed relief after the man was brought to safety.
