A 23-year-old hiker, Hadi Nazari, has expressed his gratitude to rescuers after surviving an ordeal of 13 days lost in the rugged wilderness of Australia’s Kosciuszko National Park, CNN reports.
Nazari, who went missing on December 26, was found alive on Wednesday, January 8, thanks to a stroke of luck and the persistence of search and rescue teams.
Nazari had last been seen by friends as he ventured off a trail to take photos in the park, located south of Sydney. His friends promptly reported him missing, triggering an extensive air and ground search involving over 300 personnel, according to NSW Police.
For almost two weeks, searchers scoured the 2.3 square mile park, known for its challenging trails and scenic views. While initial efforts didn’t directly locate Nazari, there was some hope, including finding a fire he had made on Sunday, a lighter and camera thought to be his.
However, it was a group of hikers, not search teams, that ultimately found Nazari. They encountered him near a trail, some 6 miles from the search command post, at around 3:15 p.m. on Wednesday. Video footage released by the NSW Rural Fire Service shows Nazari with the hikers as they awaited his rescue.
Nazari was subsequently winched into a helicopter and flown to the command post, where he received medical attention. He told rescuers he had survived by finding two granola bars at an abandoned hut.
The desperate search, which involved tracking down garbage, and his hiking poles was made even more challenging by recent sweltering summer temperatures, despite the fact that the area was known to have available water.
