A family is celebrating this weekend following an unbelievable three-week ordeal that they say should have never happened in the first place.
Their loved one -- who is deaf, can't speak or use sign language, and autistic -- vanished over the Christmas holiday.
Samantha Primus' family said the woman was found in Jamaica, then taken to Queens Hospital Center and later released onto the street with no way to get home.
"My sister was lost, found and lost again," Sophia Primus said at a press conference Saturday evening.
Get Tri-state area news and weather forecasts to your inbox. Sign up for NBC New York newsletters.
Family and friends had been searching around the clock for the 47-year-old, who was initially reported missing back on Dec. 23. She was found that same day and taken to the hospital, then discharged the next day.
Primus' whereabouts had been a mystery since Christmas Eve.
An agonizing search went on for weeks before finally coming to a successful conclusion Saturday when a good Samaritan spotted Primus, who was reportedly down 10 pounds and in need of help, riding the 1 train.
News
"She looked disoriented, tired, dehydrated," said one of the women who spotted Primus. "She looked lost."
Police had put out photos and turned to the public in their efforts to track Primus down in the days following her disappearance.
"She survived jumping from train to train, looking and hoping that she's gonna get home. We found her, with the help and support of people, everyday people," Sophia Primus said.
The family is now demanding answers from the hospital system as to how this happened.
NYC Health and Hospitals released a statement Saturday saying it "provides high quality care ot all its patients."
"The system sees patients who need various levels of care in all our emergency department and afford them the confidentiality of treatment as the law provides."
