PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — The search is over for a veteran who went missing earlier this week from Turtle Creek.

According to Turtle Creek police, 83-year-old Ernest Harris has been found at St. Vincent Hospital in Cleveland, Ohio.

Harris was last seen Tuesday afternoon after he took out the trash at his Riley Park Drive home. According to police, he wandered off from his home and walked about half a mile down the road, where he then hopped on a bus and started riding all over town.

“Surveillance tapes showed him boarding the bus and about three hours later getting off the bus in Forest Hills borough,” said Chief Dale Kraeer of Turtle Creek Police.

Surveillance tape photos show Harris on the Port Authority bus. Police speculate that from Downtown Pittsburgh he then jumped on another bus and somehow ended up in Cleveland, where he may have walked into a hospital there.

“He walked into the hospital on his own. They said he’s in good condition and there’s no injuries or anything like that,” said Kraeer.

The call came to police around noon on Thursday that he was safe and sound in Cleveland.

Search and rescue crews and more than a dozen fire departments scoured the woods near his house during the search for him this week.

“It was a pretty extensive search, a lot of time and effort and coverage, but hopefully this will put everything to a rest,” said Kraeer.

Harris, who suffers from dementia, moved to the area from Texas about six months ago. He is expected to return home in Pittsburgh in the next few days.

RELATED LINKS:
Turtle Creek Man With Dementia Reported Missing (4/4/12)
More Local News