Carolina Wilga spent 11 nights lost in the Western Australian Outback convinced nobody would find her.
It was only by ‘sheer luck’ that a woman happened to be driving past the ‘confused and disoriented’ 26-year-old wandering miles from where she had to abandon her van.
WA police acting detective inspector Jessica Securo said: ‘She basically looked at the direction of the sun and tried to head west, thinking that would be her best bet of coming across someone or a road.’
When finally found, Carolina was ‘exhausted, dehydrated and hungry’, ‘ravaged’ by mosquitoes, and covered in cuts and bruises.
She was taken to the police and airlifted to a Perth hospital for treatment.
‘This is the best result we could have hoped for,’ Ms Securo said.
‘We’re incredibly grateful that she’s been found safe, and obviously this is a huge relief for her family and all of her loved ones.
‘We never gave up hope that Carolina would be found safe and well … the support of our WA community is our greatest asset, particularly in a state as vast as ours.
‘It’s sheer luck. The area out there is mixed terrain. It can be quite dangerous if you don’t know what you’re doing or where you’re going, and it’s very easy to get lost.’
The German backpacker is not expected to be released until later, with Ms Securo saying she still needs further ‘emotional support’ alongside other medical treatment.
‘She’s had a good night’s sleep. She’s had a shower,’ the officer said.
‘We’ve got her some food, which was a massive relief for her.
‘So, she’s just taking it one day at a time at the moment.’
Carolina is now in ‘frequent communication’ with her family who are relieved and thankful the Western Australian community came together to ‘throw every resource at locating their daughter’.
Shehad been last seen on June 29 arriving in the van at a general store in the small agricultural community of Beacon, northeast of Perth.
Police found the van on Thursday, abandoned after getting stuck in dense bushland north of Beacon, with plastic orange traction tracks placed beneath the rear wheels.
‘It appears that she has somewhat lost control of the vehicle, and then it’s become mechanically unsound, and bogged,’ Ms Securo said.
Carolina stayed with the van for one day before leaving the vehicle through ‘panic’, hoping to find help.
‘She had minimal food and minimal water. From speaking to her, she has said she could have planned better,’ Ms Securo added.
Police say she had spent two years backpacking around the country, and was working at mine sites in Western Australia while staying mostly at hostels.
‘Carolina has told me that she loves Australia,’ Ms Securo said.
‘She still has so much travel to do here. She hasn’t made it over to the east coast yet, so that’s still on her bucket list.’
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
For more stories like this, check our news page.
