Family of missing Cork man appeal for information on six-month anniversary of disappearance 

John Keaveney, 43, was reported missing on August 20. 

The family of a missing Cork man have appealed to the public to check outhouses and sheds in the hope of finding their family member on the six-month anniversary of his disappearance.

John Keaveney, 43, was reported missing from Wilton, Cork City on Sunday, August 20 at 9.30pm. He went missing after he discharged himself from Cork University Hospital.

The father of three had been admitted to hospital after suffering an epileptic episode while on a family holiday in East Cork.

John’s uncle Cathal Keaveney said that due to John’s condition, and the disorientation he may have suffered as a result, “he might still be out there, not knowing we’re looking for him”.

“We've heard so many testimonies from people who've had a similar experience of people with epilepsy, that after an episode, their thinking and memory can be knocked out, so they really just lose consciousness of who they are, and even sometimes where they are,” he added.

The last confirmed sighting of John was reported at around 1.20am on Monday, August 21, as he was spotted walking along the Marina walkway, near Páirc Uí Chaoimh.

Mr Keaveney outlined his determination in the search for his nephew over the past six months, which he described as a “really difficult” time in his life.

When you get up in the morning or during the day or at night, you're just wondering where John is and you're thinking of him and how much you just miss him being around because he was such a wonderful man.

"He had a huge impact on everybody's life, particularly his wife Adrienne and their three young children and then his mum and dad and sister and all his friends.

“Nobody in their wildest dreams would have thought that there would be a second epileptic episode and John would get disorientated and that we wouldn't see him again. It still stuns you.”

Meanwhile, Philip Johnston of Mallow Search and Rescue described the efforts made by the team to locate the 42-year-old over the past six months, leaving no stone unturned.

The volunteer-led group have completed extensive river and shoreline searches, using sonar site scans and various other pieces of equipment in the hope of finding the father of three, but to no avail.

“We're not giving up hope, but it's just absolutely baffling you know,” he told 96FM's The Opinion Line.

Mr Johnston holds onto a glimmer of hope that the Cork man may be alive, adding: “Without a body, you have to cling to the hope that he's still alive.” 

The family have appealed to anyone who was in the area of Cork airport in the early hours of Monday, August 21, to pass on any information they have, no matter how small the detail may seem.

“Our search is continuing and we're still looking, we're still hoping that we can find John,” Mr Keaveney added.

Anyone with information on John's whereabouts is asked to contact his family at 083 462 2598, Mayfield Garda Station on 021 455 8510, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111, or any garda station.