Atsuko Horiuchi, who suffers from a cognitive disorder, was shopping with her husband in Great Neck Monday when she wandered away.
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While the community came together to distribute missing person flyers, aviation crews using cameras that detect body heat were searching from the sky.
The 4-foot-9, 100-pound Horiuchi was found laying down in a ravine in a wooded area near the Long Island Rail Road tracks in Great Neck.
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Officers found her sleeping with her hands across her chest and feared the worst, but they quickly realized she was conscious and said there was a sigh of relief when she opened her eyes.
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"I see as though she's going to pass out, so I grab her, I lay down, and I hoist her up over me," Sergeant Kevin Vargas said. "The officer behind me grabs her, and like a chain, they go to the other two officers on the other side of the fence. We lift her up, put her down, and God bless, for an 83-year-old, she's very strong."
Atsuko's family says she is doing fine after the terrifying ordeal.
"She just never gave up," son Yozo Horiuchi said. "The whole team never gave up, and I truly appreciate it. I know my mother wouldn't be alive without them."
Nassau County Executive Laura Curran commended the rescuers and the rescue effort.
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"This is what we're about in Nassau County: Helping each other, helping our neighbors, and thank the sweet lord we had such a beautiful ending to this very scary story," she said. "I'm so happy for your family. This is truly a blessing for all for us."
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