- For being woefully unprepared, she sure made all the right moves.
Lollipops and wine. That sounds like a tasty treat, right?
But try surviving on that stuff for days on end and you might be begging for some real food pretty quickly.
Yet, you can’t get picky in an emergency. An Australian woman recently found that out the hard way.
A 48-year-old identified only as Lillian recently became lost in the southern Australian wilderness — or bush, as they say down undah. Her car became hopelessly stuck miles and miles from civilization.
She had planned only a short trip, so Lillian hadn’t packed any food with her. All the sustenance she had in her vehicle was a bunch of lollipops and a bottle of wine.
What’s a woman to do? She slowly ate what she had while hoping someone would come to her rescue.
It took five days, but finally, her patience was rewarded. A police helicopter spotted the helpless woman and guided ground-bound rescuers to her.
Lillian seems to have survived her ordeal without any lasting issues or injuries. But we can bet that it’ll be a while before she wants to touch lollipops or wine again.
Stuck in the Bush
Lillian’s ordeal began on April 30. The woman from the Cheltenham suburb of Melbourne had decided to go on a bit of vacation in Bright, Victoria.
The place is a gateway to the Mount Buffalo National Park and is renowned for its wineries. In other words, a prime vacation spot.
According to Victoria Police, Lillian had been on her way to Dartmouth Dam to see the impressive reservoir in the area. However, her trip didn’t go exactly as planned.
At some point, she arrived at a dead end on a lousy dirt road. Lillian realized she’d taken a wrong turn at some point and was now who knows where.
Oh well, at least she could go back the way she came and find the right road. However, while attempting to turn around, her car got bogged down in deep mud.
Soon enough, the vehicle was hopelessly stuck and wasn’t going anywhere fast. Realizing she needed help, Lillian grabbed her cell phone.
But remember, this is the Australian bush, which isn’t exactly famous for its mobile coverage. The reality of the situation sank in — Lillian was stuck in the remote wilderness with no way to call for help.
So why didn’t she just start walking, you ask? It would’ve been quite a hike, and she wasn’t in the condition to do it.
“Lillian was … a good 37 miles away from the nearest town and due to health issues, she was unable to try and walk for help,” said Martin Torpey, Wodonga Police Station Sergeant.
Making the Right Moves
Fortunately for Lillian, she had arranged to call home every 24 hours to let her loved ones know she was safe. When that call never came, her family alerted the police.
The cops immediately started doing wide aerial sweeps of the areas around the Mitta Mitta, Wodonga, Bright, and Albury regions. But Australia is big and they couldn’t find the woman.
Meanwhile, Lillian was starting to get hungry. Unfortunately, she hadn’t packed any food with her as she’d only planned to do a quick day trip.
All she had for food was a few snacks and a bag of lollipops. Okay, so it’ll be a few days of fasting. But what about water?
Lillian had none. The only liquid she had with her was a bottle of wine she’d bought as a gift for her mother.
Now, Lillian is a teetotaler and doesn’t drink alcohol. But with nothing else to drink, she had no choice but to crack open the wine.
For the next five days, she survived by taking a small sip of wine when her thirst got unbearable. For sustenance, she had a lollipop every now and then.
She was smart to stay by her car, though. At night, she was able to use the vehicle’s heater for warmth, and it also gave the police a large, stationary landmark to look for.
Finally, Rescue
For five days, the cops kept looking for Lillian. Finally, on May 4, they found her.
A helicopter from the Victoria Police Air Wing spotted Lillian’s car at the end of the dirt road known as Yankee Point Track. And by the vehicle, the woman was waving at the chopper.
The recorded video of Lillian’s rescue was posted on Twitter. It shows the incredibly relieved-looking woman waving at the helicopter with both hands as the airborne cops guide a police van to Lillian’s car.
The police took Lillian to a hospital for observation. According to their reports, doctors treated her for dehydration, but otherwise, she was uninjured.
“After being lost in the bush for five days, she was extremely relieved and grateful to see us and we were just as happy to see her,” said Torpey.
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