An SOS sign made from rocks helped police find a couple who had gotten lost on a walk in the Negev.

Pair had been lost for more than a day after taking a walk in Negev

Police rescue volunteers found a missing couple in the Negev after they made an SOS sign out of stones, the Israel Police announced on Tuesday.

The couple’s family reported them missing on Monday after they had set off on a trip and had not been in contact since Sunday morning.

The man and woman, both in their 30s and from Tel Aviv, had booked a room at a hotel in the Negev but never arrived, having decided to go for a walk first. After walking some 15 kilometers, they realized that they had gotten lost and decided to make themselves a shelter near Nahal Nekarot.

The Search and Rescue unit of the Negev mountain region received a call at 2 a.m. on Monday about the missing couple. Volunteers from the unit found the couple’s vehicle abandoned in the Ramon Crater.

Large-scale searches were conducted with the assistance of a police helicopter and in cooperation with the Nature and Parks Authority.

At about 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday, the helicopter flew over Nahal Nekarot and police spotted a man waving at him, while standing next to an SOS sign made out of stones.

A volunteer rescued the couple, transporting them in the helicopter to Route 171; from there, the couple who were suffering from dehydration, were evacuated to the hospital for medical treatment.

“We appeal to hikers to learn the routes of their trip before leaving, to navigate with available and accessible navigation means, and to walk cautiously along the routes,” the police said, adding that 100 is the number to dial in any case of distress.

The couple had been on their way to a pampering vacation at the Beresheet Hotel. In light of their ordeal, the hotel’s CEO, David Amor, decided to host the couple on vacation at the expense of the hotel’s parent Isrotel chain.