When Magne Endre Barlund disappeared from Førde Central Hospital in September, emergency services, volunteers and the family conducted an extensive search. After three weeks, they were still without a trace of the 77-year-old. – We did our own search and Norwegian Rescue Dogs put in a formidable effort, says the niece of the missing man, Oddfrid Barlund Stensvoll. Uncle Magne was about to become part of the gloomy statistics. According to Kripos, 1,465 people were missing as of 1 October. Many of them have been missing for many years. But the search for Magne Barlund was eventually to yield results.. The good forces It was Magne Endre Barlund from Kinn municipality who was found near Viefjellet in Førde. Pictured here at a family get-together. Photo: Privat The 77-year-old Sunnfjord native left Førde Central Hospital on his own a month ago. This was the third time he disappeared from the hospital during a short supervision stay. He was thinly dressed, had dementia and poor health. Three days after he disappeared, they searched for him who was presumed dead. On Saturday 19 October, Magne was found dead on the outskirts of Førde by rescue dogs. – We really got to see the good forces we have around us. The police, volunteers and colleagues all wanted to give us the advice they had on how we should proceed, says Stensvoll. Although the incident had a tragic outcome, Magne’s brothers, Atle (left) and Magnar (right), and niece Oddfrid are grateful that the rescue team found him in the end. Photo: Enya Heggestad / news A piece in a big game Normally, Norwegian Rescue Dogs conduct searches at the request of the police, but this time they conducted a search on their own initiative. They had received a very special tip. – We decided to be a little more open to the alternative, so we contacted a clairvoyant, says Stensvoll. The recording from the clairvoyant was used to map where they could conduct further searches. Stensvoll believes these were central to finding her uncle. – The clairvoyant’s descriptions gave us, in addition to the expertise from Norwegian Rescue Dogs, the right direction where Helene could set up a good route last weekend, says Stensvoll. Helene Sæterdal is a dog handler and emergency manager for Norwegian Rescue Dogs Sogn og Fjordane. She led the search for Magne Endre Barlund. Helene Sæterdal spends many hours training her own and others’ dogs. Photo: Malene Laura Solheim / news – We spent many hours looking for the missing one, especially the first four days. In addition, there are the countless hours we spend training the dogs several times a week, says Sæterdal. She does not wish to comment on how they used the input from the clairvoyant, but says that tips from the family motivated them to take the initiative to continue with the search. The dog Nitro was one of four dogs that were involved and found the missing 77-year-old last weekend. Photo: Malene Laura Solheim / news – It is rare that we do searches on our own initiative, but we had a great desire to give the family an answer. That’s what we train for, says Sæterdal. What are Norwegian Rescue Dogs? Photo: Malene Laura Solheim / news Norske Redningshunder (NRH) is a voluntary humanitarian rescue organization and part of the emergency response in Norway. They work closely with the police, the Red Cross, Norwegian People’s Aid and other voluntary and professional actors. NRH has its roots back to a rescue operation in Aurland municipality in Sogn in 1947 and has since then become an established organization throughout Norway. In 1999, the Norwegian Search and Rescue Team (NORSAR) was established, which has assisted in several missions abroad. Source: Norske Reddingshunder Thankful – We felt that both the police and the rescue dogs accepted all the input we came up with, even those that were a bit alternative. They saw that it was important for us to get answers to what had happened, says Stensvoll. news has been in contact with the West police district about how they treat tips from clairvoyants. They do not wish to comment on this. Nevertheless, they emphasize that they do not have separate routines for tips from clairvoyants and always accept tips in all matters, which they evaluate on an ongoing basis. In a cafe in Florø, Atle, Magnar and Oddfrid sit and listen to the recording of the conversation with the clairvoyant. Photo: Malene Laura Solheim / news On Friday 25 October, Magne Endre Barlund was buried in his hometown, Eikefjord in Sunnfjord. – We feel we have received the help we needed throughout the whole process, says Atle Barlund, Magne’s brother. Published 29/10/2024, at 17.14
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1465 people – men and women
