AN ELDERLY man living with Alzheimer's disease has spent a second night missing from home as a multi-agency search for him enters its third day.
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Police sent a geo-targeting text message to residents in the Beresfield area on Wednesday after reports 85-year-old Raymond Peterson was spotted on the Pacific Highway at Raymond Terrace about 7.30am.
Officers combed the area but a spokesperson confirmed they have not yet been able to locate Mr Peterson, who lives with Alzheimer's disease.
Police, State Emergency Service (SES) volunteers and concerned community members and loved ones were out searching for Mr Peterson again on Wednesday morning.
The search area includes Beresfield, Thornton, Tarro, Woodbury and has been extended into Black Hill.
Police have urged any community members out searching to be vigilant, check their properties, and call triple-zero immediately if he's sighted or any information is discovered.
It's been a trying few days of not knowing for Mr Peterson's daughter Julie Peterson.
She said her father had left to walk his dog Jackie and post a letter about 2.30pm on Monday.
He was last seen on Yarrum Avenue about 2pm on Monday.
Mr Peterson is of Caucasian appearance, about 175cm tall, has a thin build, and is bald-headed with a grey moustache and goatee.
He was last seen wearing a navy long-sleeved shirt, dark grey jeans, a cap, and prescription glasses.
Ms Peterson said his cap had been found at the Beresfield golf course, and police confirmed Jackie the dog had made it home alone about 8pm on Monday.
She urged anyone in the search area to please check their yards, under their houses, sheds and garages multiple times throughout the day.
"Anywhere that someone might be able to find shelter," she said.
"Just because a place has been searched once, doesn't mean he won't come back.
"We just don't know."
Mrs Peterson said the community had rallied around and shown their support by joining in the large-scale search, travelling around by car and on foot.
She told the Newcastle Herald her father was a "genuinely kind man".
Ms Peterson described her father as someone with a "huge smile" who would always sale hello to families has he passed them while walking his dog.
She said he was a "really cool dresser", a champion water skiier, and had been a long-distance cyclist up until his Alzheimer's diagnosis two years ago.
"He seriously does not have a bad bone in his body," she said.
"Thank you for everything you're doing to help find dad. He is a star."
IN THE NEWS:
Police and crime reporter at the Newcastle Herald. Email: afalkenmire@austcommunitymedia.com.au
Police and crime reporter at the Newcastle Herald. Email: afalkenmire@austcommunitymedia.com.au
