The family of a pensioner discovered close to death after surviving three nights in a freezing roadside ditch have thanked those who helped find her.

Dementia sufferer Paulina Manfredini, 73, was severely hypothermic when she was found by a police sniffer dog more than 60 hours after being reported missing from her Canterbury home.

Fears for her life had grown as a widespread search looked likely to extend into a fourth day.

But Mrs Manfredini was eventually found last Tuesday afternoon off the A2 London Road in Faversham, with police saying she was two hours from death.

Her son, Paulo Manfredini, thanked those who almost certainly saved his mother’s life.

He said: “I would like to thank everyone who was involved in the search for my mum – the police officers, volunteers from Kent Search and Rescue, the media and, last but by no means least, the members of the public who shared the appeals on social media and phoned in with information.

“I would like to give a special thank you to the bus driver who identified her getting on a bus from Canterbury to Faversham, and the lady who recognised her photo and phoned in to say she had seen her at the Western Link roundabout in Faversham.

“If it wasn’t for her call the search and rescue teams would not have been looking in the right location.

“Finally, I would like to thank police dog Dexter and his handler Paul Donovan, who found her.

“My mum is still in hospital but is recovering well, thanks to their efforts.”

The search was sparked when Mrs Manfredini was reported missing on Saturday, November 5. The hunt initially focused on the A2 Gate Services at Dunkirk, before moving to Faversham.

After a call led police to the A2 London Road, Mrs Manfredini was found by sniffer dog Dexter and PC Donovan.

The firefighter-turned-PC has hit headlines in the past for his heroic actions, which include reviving a rugby player who suffered a heart attack, smothering the flames of a woman who set herself on fire and pulling a suicidal woman to safety after she jumped from a bridge.