A 48-year-old woman who went missing for five days in the Australian bush managed to survive by drinking wine and eating lollipops. Her ordeal started last Sunday when she set off on what was just meant to be a short day trip, travelling through the bushland at Bright in Victoria’s High Country.
Things started to not go to plan when she hit a dead-end and tried to turn her car around, but it became stuck in the mud.
The woman, who Australian police have named as Lillian, could not call for help because she didn’t have any mobile reception.
She was also unable to walk towards help due to health issues so she had to stay with her car and hope that someone would come and rescue her.
During the chilly nights of the Australian autumn, she used her car’s heater to keep warm.
Police began to search the Mitta Mitta, Wodonga, Bright, and Albury areas after her family raised the alarm on April 30 because they had not received Lillian’s daily check-in call.
After spotting her on Friday, the police helicopter was able to direct a police van to where she was, and they found her “safe and well”.
Wodonga Police Station Sergeant Martin Torpey said Lillian survived partly due to some gifts she had stashed away in her vehicle.
Sergeant Torpey said: “Lillian was found a good 60km away from the nearest town and due to health issues she was unable to try and walk for help so stayed with her car.”
READ MORE: Great white shark that tore apart RAF veteran was ‘provoked’
He added: “She used great common sense to stay with her car and not wander off into bushland, which assisted in police being able to find her.”
“She was only planning a short-day trip so had only taken a couple of snacks and lollies with her but no water.
“The only liquid Lillian, who doesn’t drink, had with her was a bottle of wine she had bought as a gift for her mother so that got her through.”
He added: “While she couldn’t move her car, she was able to use the heater overnight give her some warmth.
“After being lost in the bush for five days, she was extremely relieved and grateful to see us and we were just as happy to see her.”
New York Post reports that she was taken to hospital to be treated for dehydration where she remains under observation.