Two bushwalkers have been winched to safety and treated for mild hypothermia after spending the night trapped in the Blue Mountains in New South Wales.
At about 6pm on Saturday, a 25-year-old man and an 18-year-old woman set off an emergency beacon at Mount Tomah.
The pair had been abseiling and canyoning near Clausters Canyon when they got into trouble and called for help.
About four hours later, emergency services attempted to rescue the couple but were unable to reach them due to poor conditions and the mission was suspended.
The rescue operation continued at 7.30am this morning, where Police Air located and winched the hikers to safety.
Two Police Rescue officers were then also winched to safety.
Greg Marshall from NSW Ambulance praised the hikers for bringing a distress beacon with them, noting it may have saved their lives.
“This couple were very cold when we got to them and temperatures close to zero degrees made it an uncomfortable night,” he said.
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“They did the right thing in taking an EPIRB distress beacon with them, and activating it when they got into trouble.
“The coordinates we received helped our aeromedical team locate them and get assistance to them.
“It’s an important lesson for everybody who goes out into the bush – take an EPIRB with you. It can be a life-saving device.
“This was a tricky and prolonged rescue operation with all agencies involved working well together for a good outcome.”
