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'Lucky to be alive': Lost tramper found after 10 days in bush

Author
Akula Sharma,
Publish Date
Tue, 18 Jul 2023, 9:15am

'Lucky to be alive': Lost tramper found after 10 days in bush

Author
Akula Sharma,
Publish Date
Tue, 18 Jul 2023, 9:15am

A tramper who had been missing for ten days has been found alive in remote backcountry at the top of the South Island.

The man is recovering in hospital after being located by police and LandSAR in Baton Valley last night.

He had been without food for a week and 鈥渋s fortunate to have survived鈥�, a police spokesperson said.

The search for the missing tramper was launched on Monday morning after a member of the public reported finding an abandoned tent at Ellis River, along with a bicycle and a number of other items, the police spokesperson said.

鈥淭he search teams, which included a SAR dog, were deployed and conducted a search over a wide area.

鈥淭he man was located by LandSAR volunteers around three kilometres from the end of Baton Valley Road shortly after 5pm.鈥�

Baton Valley runs roughly parallel to the eastern edge of Kahurangi National Park, at the top of the South Island, and is regarded as an isolated spot.

A cycle trail has recently opened in the past few years giving greater access to the area.

Nelson Bays Search and Rescue Sergeant Jonny Evans said a helicopter was unable to be sent up due to low cloud so the man was assisted out by searchers before being taken to Nelson Hospital.

鈥淎t this stage, we believe the man had been lost for ten days, but had not been reported missing.

鈥淗e is very lucky to be alive and I鈥檇 like to thank the member of the public who initially reported finding the tent and other items, as well as those who got in touch with us when we appealed for information about the tent on social media.鈥�

Evans said this situation showed the importance of getting in touch with the police when one saw something that they thought did not seem quite right.

鈥淭he information provided by the public enabled us to get a search up and running 鈥� I have no doubt we would be dealing with a very different situation if this had not been reported to the police when it was.

鈥淎nd I would like to thank all those involved in the search, including our LandSAR volunteers. It was a very long day for them and they can be proud of the work they did to recover this man and bring him to safety.鈥�

Police encourage anyone heading out tramping or hunting to ensure they were equipped with a Personal Locator Beacon, Evans said.

鈥淏eacons are a lifesaving tool which allow rescue teams to respond to your location as soon as possible.

鈥淚f you are exploring the outdoors and are unable to make it out for any reason, or if you have concerns for someone else, please do not hesitate to activate your beacon.鈥�

Akula Sharma is an Auckland-based reporter who joined the Herald in 2022. She has previously worked at the Gisborne Herald.

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