'Many lives can be saved': One year since Earl Moberg disappeared, calls for change continue

One year since Earl Moberg disappeared in Winnipeg, his family’s calls for changes to the silver alert system are on their way to Parliament Hill.

The 81-year-old man was last seen on Dec. 12, 2023, in the River East area. Moberg had been living with dementia; his family believes he may have gotten lost while out on a walk.

Winnipeg police say one year later, Moberg has not been found, though the investigation is ongoing.

Police had issued a silver alert online and to local media when Moberg disappeared. However, his family has been calling for changes to the silver alert system.

Those calls will soon be heard by the federal government.

“If we find these individuals immediately, many lives can be saved,” said Raquel Dancho, the Member of Parliament for Kildonan-St. Paul.

Dancho has sponsored a petition on behalf of Moberg’s family, calling on the federal government to develop a national silver alert system.

“We don't have a national program for seniors, and with over a million people in Canada living with some form of dementia, and as our population continues to age, this will increasingly become an important issue,” Dancho told CTV News.

Similar to an Amber Alert for vulnerable children who are abducted or go missing, Dancho wants to see geographically targeted alerts sent to phones and broadcast media when a vulnerable adult goes missing.

She said this would provide the opportunity for everyone in the community to be notified immediately and be on the lookout—which could save lives.

“We know in Winnipeg, if you are missing and you are a senior or a child, it's very dangerous in the wintertime,” Dancho said.

It’s change Manitoba’s Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure Lisa Naylor supports.

“We've already advocated at the federal level for the ability for the silver alert to be sent out on the National Broadcasting System,” Naylor told CTV News.

She said the framework is already in place for a silver alert system. All that is needed now is a decision from the federal government.

“It is in the federal government's hands. So at this point, we just continue to advocate on behalf of Manitobans,” Naylor said.

Dancho said the petition has nearly 2,200 signatures and is set to close on Jan. 20, 2025. She hopes to table it in the House of Commons in late January or early February.

Moberg’s case was reviewed as a critical incident by the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority. The authority confirmed on Thursday the review has been completed and recommendations have been made in collaboration with the Moberg family. However, the authority said all information related to a critical incident is confidential and won’t be shared publicly.

“We are grateful for the family’s input and the suggestions they shared with us to help support clients with dementia who are living in the community,” a WRHA spokesperson told CTV News in an emailed statement.

The Alzheimer Society of Manitoba was not available for comment Thursday, but noted it has several resources available for families caring for someone with dementia.

Winnipeg police ask anyone with information about Moberg’s case to call the Missing Persons Unit at 204-986-6250.