Young woman is found safe and well after spending the night shivering in a cave in 1C temperatures when she went missing while hiking through the bush
- A 22-year-old woman was found alive after spending 24 hours lost in mountains
- She set out for a solo hike in Grampians National Park, Victoria, 12pm yesterday
- She messaged her mum at 8pm to say she was lost but was found Friday night
- The woman said she slept in a cave overnight to stay warm in 1.3C temperatures
- An SES unit said an average of 80 people are rescued from Grampians every year
A young woman who went missing while hiking in the bush was found with just a few scratches 24 hours later after she slept in caves to escape the freezing 1.3C temperatures.
Michaela, 22, left for a solo hike in the Mount Rosea area near Halls Gap in Victoria’s Grampians National Park at about 12pm on Thursday but sent a desperate message to her mum at about 8pm saying she was lost.
Shortly after her phone fell flat and she was forced to spend the night alone in the bush.
A 22-year-old woman (pictured left with her mother, right) was found alive and well 24 hours after she went missing from a hike in Grampians National Park, Victoria
Her worried mother contacted emergency services at about 10pm and a widespread search effort was launched that continued until about 3.30am on Friday.
SES and police helicopters resumed the search five hours later and at 5pm on Friday the 22-year-old stumbled out onto a road and was found.
Paramedics treated the woman but found she only suffered a few cuts during her 24-hour ordeal.
SES and police (above) searched until 3.30am on Friday and resumed 9am to find the young woman who survived the cold night by sleeping in a cave
Her mother thanked rescuers for their efforts and said the family was grateful to welcomed her daughter home.
‘It’s been a wonderful outcome and she’s well and we’re just going to go home and give her a big hug,’ she told Seven News.
An SES unit in the area told the ABC an average of 80 people need to be rescued from the Grampians every year.
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