A 58-year-old bushwalker who has been lost in Lamington National Park on the Gold Coast for five days has been found alive.
A massive search has been underway since the man phoned police on Saturday night to say he was in trouble … before his phone went dead. However, he managed to stumble out of the rainforest earlier today and the occupants of a farmhouse on Christmas Creek Road were able to call emergency services.
The man told police he had been eating eight sultanas a day to stay alive.
Inspector Mike Dowdy told the ABC that the man had limited rations with him when he went for his walk.
“He took a small container of sultanas, three sandwiches and three 600ml bottles of water,” he said. “He ate the sandwiches on Saturday night, and since Sunday he’s been living on eight sultanas a day.”
Queensland Ambulance Service senior operations supervisor Adrian Tong said when paramedics arrived at the farmhouse, the man was sitting in a chair, in good spirits.
“He had very minor cuts and grazes to his legs and to his arms,” he told the ABC. “He had a little bit to eat and drink over the last couple of days. Otherwise in very good condition.”
Doctors at Logan Hospital will soon decide whether the man remains in hospital or will be discharged.
More than 60 people were involved in the search, including 20 professional hikers. Search crews had followed creek lines through the national park.
