The number of people with dementia who go missing while venturing out alone is increasing. In Okinawa Prefecture, 118 such cases were reported to the prefectural police last year, the highest number since police began taking statistics in 2012.
As of the end of September this year, the number of such cases was 83. While most of these people were found the same day they went missing, four people were found dead, the highest number in at least the past five years.
As Japan's population ages, support for people with dementia and their families will become even more important, and local communities are searching for ways to better deal with the risks of elderly people going missing.
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