Updated 12.20
Gardaí have stood down a Child Rescue Ireland alert after a missing Roscommon woman and her three children were found safe and well.
Fiona Gregg from Ballyforan and her three children were found by an off-duty PSNI officer in Co. Fermanagh this morning - on foot of a widespread appeal for information by gardaí.
She's been taken into custody under the Mental Health Act and her three children are in the care of the social services in the North.
Ms. Gregg from Hawthorn Avenue in Ballyforan in Co. Roscommon and her three children Killian (8), Elisha (6), and Derbhla (2) were last seen at their local school yesterday afternoon.
A neighbour raised the alarm last night after they had been missing for around six hours and after careful consideration, gardaí launched a widespread appeal for information because they had a "serious concerns" for the safety of the children. It's only the second time since its inception last year that a CRI alert has been issued.
That appeal led directly to their safe location - an off-duty PSNI officer spotted the family's car in a petrol station in Enniskillen in Co Fermanagh and immediately called the police.
In a statement this morning, the PSNI confirmed a woman in her 40s has been taken into custody under the Mental Health Act and three children are now in the care of the social services.
Gardaí are now appealing for privacy for the family.
Rhona McGinn is the East Regional Manager with the ISPCC - she says the incident shows that the new CRI alert system works:
Meanwhile, the neighbour who reported the Greggs missing, Marilyn King, has given her reaction to the news that they've been found on The Pat Kenny Show "It's just great that she's found and that everyone's ok, because everyone was so worried about her."
Shannonside FM reporter Mary-Claire Greally spoke to Pat Kenny:
CRI launched
The second ever CRI alert was issued in the early hours of this morning after gardaí became concerned that the Gregg family hadn't been seen since 3 O'clock yesterday afternoon, outside Ballyforan National School.
CRI Alert Fiona Gregg Call 999 if you see this car Reg No 01G 7051 a blue Nissan Almera http://t.co/bq8mKQpR9b pic.twitter.com/t8jn41Pji1
— Garda Info (@gardainfo) November 28, 2013
Killian and Elisha were wearing their school uniforms, seen above, when they disappeared yesterday
A neighbour reported the Greggs missing after they couldn't be found at their home on Hawthorn Avenue, Ballyforan.
Superintendent David Taylor spoke to Newstalk reporter Louise Kelly at Garda Headquarters this morning:
Deputy Denis Naughton spoke to Newstalk's Breakfast:
As part of the garda CRI alert, road signs nationwide are this morning displayed the Greggs' car registration plate - seen here the N4
Gardaí say initiating a CRI Alert requires careful consideration and it is done only when media assistance is considered to be vital to ensuring the safe return of the child.
