POLICE AND family members remain optimistic that they will find Limerick woman Maireád Geary, who disappeared whilst out walking near the Northern Italian town of Stresa on Lake Maggiore last Friday.
Ms Geary (82), a widow, travelled to Stresa last week for a holiday with a group of 40 Limerick pensioners and retired people.
Last Friday, she left her hotel in Stresa saying she intended to take the cable car to the top of nearby Mount Mottarone, a popular viewing spot. When she got to the top she set off on her own for a walk and has not been seen since.
Last night, her son Jeff Geary, who has travelled to Stresa to help in the search, confirmed that police, rescue workers and volunteers were concentrating their efforts on the 4,500 feet heights of Mount Mottarone. Mr Geary said the area around Stresa, down at lake level, had also been searched.
He said his mother was in excellent health, given her age, and that she walked every day. It would have been normal enough for her to have set out on a walk.
Police spokesmen in Stresa were reluctant to speculate on what might have happened to Ms Geary, saying only that the search would continue for the time being. Carabinieri, mountain rescue teams, fire fighters and one helicopter have all been used in the search.
Once a permanent fixture on the Grand Tour of Italy, Stresa has been an important tourist venue for the last 150 years.
On one side, the Laggio Maggiore touches on Lombardy and on the other side, it touches Piedmont. The Northern tip of the lake goes into Ticino, Italian-speaking Switzerland.
Prayers were being said in Limerick yesterday for the safe return of the grandmother.
Ms Geary's group of 40 holidaymakers, who arrived at the mountain resort last week, is due to travel home today.
Her neigbour and local Fine Gael councillor Marie Byrne said the entire community was concerned about her safety.
"The first I knew about it was when she was prayed for at Mass on Sunday morning," Ms Byrne said. "People are very disturbed and very upset. She is a well-known lady to everybody here and all I can say is that the prayers of the community are certainly with her and her family at this time and that she will be returned safely."