LIFT OF LIFE
An epic of New Zealand bush survival
After 19 days in the bush Jessica O’Connor and Dion Reynolds were found when a helicopter spotted smoke from a fire they lit and saw the pair waving. They’d been without food in the Kahurangi National Park for some time after becoming lost early on in their tramp due to fog, and suffered minor injuries. ‘This is a fantastic outcome and one that we were all hoping for, although we were becoming increasingly concerned as the days progressed,’ Nelson police chief, Inspector Paul Borrell said.
May 9
Jessica O’Connor and Dion Reynolds, both 23, head into the Anatori Valley in northwest Nelson to go tramping. They expect to be out of Kahurangi National Park on May 14.
May 19
A search begins for the overdue trampers after they are reported missing. Police ask anyone who had been around the Anatori, Webb, Kokopu, Independent and Fraser rivers to get in touch.
May 21
Footprints and a historic campsite are found near the Webb River. Police are unable to confirm it either were connected to the two. A Royal New Zealand Air Force helicopter joins the search.
May 24
Heavy rainfall hampers the search, with teams are pulled out of more exposed areas to focus on areas safe to operate in through the rain.
May 25
Weather conditions worsen overnight, forcing police to halt air and land-based searches.
May 26
Police find a jersey that may have belonged to Reynolds, but none of his workmates at Roots Bar in Takaka can identify it.
Yesterday
Searchers see smoke from a fire and two people waving around 1pm in the Anatori search area, near the headwaters of the Fraser stream. It is O’Connor and Reynolds. The pair, who have minor injuries, are taken by an Air Force NH90 helicopter to Nelson Hospital. They are said to be “healthy and hungry.”