A thank you, from the Police Minister, to those in the community who braved the cold to find a missing, elderly woman

An emergency alert was sent out at about half-past-eight last night, warning a 79 year old woman was missing from Christchurch's Bishopdale.

The woman was found within two hours, thanks to help from members of the public.

Mark Mitchell says Police were absolutely justified in using the alert, which helped the search massively.

He says we're better off getting information out early.