A Good Samaritan couple – and their satellite phone – have potentially saved the lives of two British tourists who crashed their car on the Oodnadatta Track in outback South Australia.
Brad Warren, 21, and Oliver Walker, 22, were seriously injured last week when their Toyota Rav 4 skidded on sand and overturned as they were driving through the desert, approximately 50 kilometres south-east of William Creek.
The news.com.au website reports that Mr Walker was thrown from the window of the vehicle, while Mr Warren, who had been driving, was temporarily half-blinded by a scratch to his eye.
“When we started rolling, I closed my eyes and thought ‘you’re dying, you just have to let this happen’,” Mr Warren told the website. “Next thing I was crawling out the wreckage to find Ollie lying face down, he was bloody and unconscious: I thought he was dead for about 20 seconds … then he made a groan.”
The pair sought shelter from the blistering heat and waited for hours, hoping against hope that help would appear.
Incredibly, just before dusk, James Lescohier and Laura Matthews arrived on the scene. Both had medical backgrounds and, critically, they also had a satellite phone.
After they called for help, a Royal Flying Doctor Service aircraft was dispatched from the William Creek airstrip. The injured pair were airlifted by an aeromedical crew and taken on a 700-kilometre flight to the RFDS Adelaide Base before being transferred to Royal Adelaide Hospital.
Mr Walker suffered fractured ribs, grazes and a punctured lung, while Mr Warren suffered a scraped cornea. Both have now been discharged from hospital.
The British tourists are incredibly grateful to their rescuers but told news.com.au that the scare would not stop them continuing to travel around Australia.
“James and Laura were so good to us, they saved our lives,” Mr Warren said. “The car and our possessions are ruined, but it’s very good to be alive. That’s the main thing we’re taking away from this.”
Lucky to be alive. Thrown out the window means no seatbelt being worn. It’s the “one percenters” that kill; but in this case the blokes were just plain lucky.
we travelled 90.000km around Australia mostly remote areas and yes we always had our satphone with us. Never had to use it but worth the investment!
Yes, we travel with a satellite phone and a handheld E-pirb (personal locator beacon). Glad these guys are OK.
The main thing they should take away is to get a satellite phone.