A full-scale manhunt has been launched after a terminally ill patient "disappeared" from a Kent hospital.

But all is not what it seems, as the operation - involving police, Kent Search and Rescue (KSAR) personnel and other 999 workers - is, in fact, a major exercise.

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The search involves a multi-agency operational exercise, which focuses on a fictitious seriously ill man who goes missing from Maidstone Hospital.

KSAR chairman Paul Lewis said: "These exercises are very important to us as it's where we can hone our skills and prepare people for what might happen.

"We never know where our next search is coming from so it's really important we can practice these skills."

Today's scenario has been based on a similar incident which recently happened at the county town hospital, in Hermitage Lane.

In the staged exercise, Police alerted KSAR after the 6ft man disappeared around midnight on Friday.

A call-out text was sent to more than 100 volunteers, who were scrambled in the hunt for the vulnerable man.

It's thought the 47-year-old patient could be heading towards his home in East Malling.

A group began searching straight away but were replaced this morning with a crew of four foot teams, mountain bike patrols and 4x4 vehicles.

Their aim was to find and get the patient back to safety.

But, as the search gathered pace, several "complications" occurred, starting with a fresh call-out to a man missing with his two children in Dover.

Around 25 of the searchers are sent to search the White Cliffs, near to where the family were last seen, with the assistance of the coastguard, while the rest continued to scour Oaken Wood in Maidstone.

During the search of the woodland, the team came across a young boy, played by one of several actors, who has fallen from a tree. The youngster had a suspected broken leg, back injuries and a head wound.

The responders gave the boy first aid before carrying him on a stretcher to a waiting ambulance.

The crew continued with their original search but were halted once again when they found another person wounded in the woods.

The man, who had blood on his head, was injured when he crashed a quad bike and had been wandering the area overnight.

Police confirmed he is one of two people related to the patient who have also been reported as missing.

The other biker went off to get help but had not returned. He was later found.

Mr Lewis said: "These scenarios are designed to prepare people for what might happen during a search and it's possible we could find someone injured while looking for a missing person.

"We have to be prepared for everything."

The searchers continued to look for the patient into the afternoon.

He was discovered at around 4.30pm and was taken to safety.

The charity stages searches for this scale three times a year to test rescuers' ability and response times in handling an emergency.

Around 30 members taking part in today's exercise are new recruits, including about 20 people who became volunteers following the charity's high profile search for 28-year-old Pat Lamb.

KSAR is a member of The Association of Lowland Search & Rescue (ALSAR), which has around 1,500 volunteers across the UK.

For more details about the organisation, visit www.ksar.co.uk.