Vancouver woman who went missing before Christmas located, returned to hospital

A Vancouver woman who went missing from the UBC Hospital has been located and returned, local RCMP confirmed Monday night.

Staff Sgt. Janelle Shoihet told Global News that Christel Flynn, who had not been seen since Dec. 20, has been found. Details on her condition or where she was found were not immediately available.

The good news comes just hours after her family renewed a plea for help locating 38-year-old Christel, who “bolted” while on a escorted outdoor walk, according to her mother, Karen Flynn.

“She has no medication, she has no financial means to get money and that’s very hard because they can’t track her activity,” Flynn said in an interview earlier in the day.

“I’m hoping if she were to speak to a stranger, a good Samaritan would notice there’s something wrong in the conversation and reach out for help or call 911.”

Christel was transferred to the UBC Hospital in the fall for treatment for psychosis, said Flynn, after failing to “stabilize” well at the Surrey Memorial Hospital.

She had gone missing before, said her mother, but not while under the supervision and care of a provincial health authority.

“They know Christel’s barriers and they know her situation, so I question if she wasn’t stable, why was she outside going for a walk?” asked Flynn.

Requests for comment on this story were not returned by Vancouver Coastal Health on Monday.

2:18 Search continues for woman missing from UBC hospital

RCMP did not issue a release about Christel’s disappearance until Dec. 24 — after “all immediate investigative avenues had been exhausted,” it explained in a Monday statement to Global News.

“Significant efforts to locate her by RCMP had been underway since being reported to police, including but not limited to, extensive foot and vehicle patrols of her last known location, hospital checks, known location checks, checks with family and friends, as well as liaising with other all other policing agencies in the Lower Mainland and outside,” wrote Shoihet.

Shoihet said Christel was last seen running northbound on Westbrook Mall and making left turn on University Boulevard around 1 p.m. on Dec. 20 — information that was not included in the Dec. 24 release. In that release, the detachment said she was last seen wearing a light beige coat, black leggings, blue runners and a black toque.

2:45 Frigid conditions in B.C. expected to persist in parts of province

Christel’s brother, Ben Flynn, had been hanging missing posters outside the UBC Hospital’s Detwiller Pavilion, but told Global News someone had removed them.

“Why would they do that? It’s just unbelievable,” he said in an interview before Christel’s return to the hospital was confirmed.

“It’s really cold out, there’s a lot of wooded area around here and not being in your right state of mind … she has no cell phone, no bank card, nothing.”

Karen Flynn said Christel has a condo in Surrey and has previously lived in Vernon, but she had no idea where her daughter might have gone.

More to come.