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BOWDOIN — A 78-year-old Bowdoin man who was reported missing Tuesday night was found alive near his home Tuesday night.

According to Maine Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, James Conway left his West Road home at around 2 p.m. and was reported missing by his wife about four hours later.

Game Warden Dave Chabot and a K9 tracker found Conway at about 7:45 p.m. on the edge of a wooded road about 300 yards from his home, unresponsive and suffering from hypothermia.

The temperatures were in the low 40s that evening according to Mark Latti, a spokesman for Maine Inland Fisheries and Wildlife.

Conway was hospitalized at Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston for observation. He was still there as of Wednesday morning, Latti said.

A hospital spokesperson said Wednesday afternoon that the hospital is not releasing any information about his condition at the request of his family.

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According to a Sagadahoc County Sheriff’s Office Facebook post, Conway hasn’t been diagnosed with dementia, “however family is concerned there is a possibility of dementia setting in.”

Conway had been last seen working in his yard at around 2 p.m. His wife noticed he did not come in for his evening nap or dinner.

Bowdoin Fire Chief Tom Garrepy said she went looking for him at around 5 p.m. and spent a little over an hour searching for Conway in the woods before she reported him missing. The area behind their home is heavily wooded.

Garrepy said Conway was wet and very cold when the Game Warden found him.

“Had it been a couple hours more, we may not have found him alive,” he said.

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