Missing Kiwi with Parkinson's located after Notre Dame disappearance

6:02pm
The family of Kurt McNamara said he used a wheelchair, had a prosthetic leg, and required urgent medication and medical support.

A New Zealand man with Parkinson's disease who went missing in Paris for three days has been found alive in hospital.

The family of Kurt McNamara launched urgent appeals on social media after he disappeared near Notre Dame Cathedral about 4.30pm local time on Saturday (2.30am Sunday NZ time), during a night of unrest linked to the UEFA Champions League celebrations in Paris.

In posts shared online, the family said McNamara used a wheelchair, had a prosthetic leg and required urgent medication and medical support.

"He will be very distressed, confused & hungry/thirsty. He carries no money, no phone & no passport," the family posted online.

The family said McNamara had last been seen in the Notre Dame area after becoming separated from relatives while they were lighting a candle near an exit of the cathedral.

They said another traveller appeared to assist him out of the building without the family realising, and they were unable to locate or contact him afterwards.

Unable to find McNamara, they filed a missing persons report and were working with police and the New Zealand Embassy to find him, with a focus on Notre Dame.

"Security camera footage from Saturday shows Kurt in multiple locations there."

Social media posts appealing for help described him as a "very high fall risk" because of his mobility issues and Parkinson's disease.

On Wednesday, the family confirmed on social media that McNamara had been located in a Paris hospital.

The circumstances of how he came to be there were not revealed.

The disappearance happened during widespread disorder following Paris Saint-Germain's Champions League final victory over Arsenal on Saturday night.

French authorities reported hundreds of injuries and arrests during clashes between football fans and police across the country. The largest disturbances were in Paris, where thousands of officers had been deployed, and hundreds of people were injured.

rnz.co.nz

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