Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
HELICOPTER crews yesterday withstood battering winds and heavy rain to rescue two German tourists trapped within the state’s unforgiving Southern forests.
The two men, aged 39 and 40, had been stuck for five days within the New River region and could barely move their fingers when rescue crews arrived.
The Westpac Rescue Helicopter winched the pair out of dense forest about 8.30am, half an hour after receipt of their emergency SPOT beacon signal.
Hobart Marine and Rescue Services Constable Drew Oakden said the adventurers found themselves endangered by record 99-year rains and looming snowfall predictions.
‘‘They got to horizontal scrub and were making progress of about 100 metres an hour,’’ Constable Oakden said.
‘‘It got to a point where they were taking longer and longer to warm up and had worn out their energy reserves.
‘‘They made a good call, rather than pushing on to exhaustion.
‘‘They had been in the gorge for the past five days.’’
He said the Germans were experienced and highly prepared for the trek, but were ultimately defeated by the elements on their way to Federation Peak.
‘‘I have to commend them on being prepared,’’ Constable Oakden said.
‘‘If today had been a warm, sunny day, they’d have picked back up and kept going.’’
He said they had been fruit-picking a week before their trek and had now hired a car to explore some more accessible areas of the state.
Constable Oakden said the two were returned to Hobart cold and uninjured, but would not make another attempt at the passage.
Also yesterday, an 83-year-old woman from the United Kingdom was airlifted from Frog Flats on the Overland Track.
The woman was part of a guided tour when she injured her leg.
Rescue crews took her to Hobart.