Hunter lay trapped for five days

Press, Volume CXII, Issue 32903, 29 April 1972, Page 16

Hunter lay trapped for five days

(New Zealand Press Association) DUNEDIN, April 28. An Oamaru deerstalker who lay trapped for five days under a large fallen tree in rugged bush country, 60 miles northwest of Wanaka, was rescued by helicopter about 3 p.m. today.

He is Douglas Mather, aged 19, who suffered only slight exposure and malnutrition. Mr Mather was walking ini to join his two companions I at the headwaters of the Cameron Creek, close to thei Makarora River, when the accident occurred. The falling tree trapped: him by the leg, and he lay there, unable to move, until his companions discovered him late this morning. His companions had not been worried about him; they thought he had not entered

,lthe bush because of bad ] ' weather. When they found him, they -were unable to lift the tree, so they called the parks ] board ranger at Makarora. j 5 ; He in turn informed Con-! .stable P. V. Keown of! J Wanaka, and Chief Superin-i > dendant F. A. Gordon, of thei police in Dunedin. I Superintendent Gordon aut-: ' horised a helicopter and res-1 I cue team to fly in to free the j I trapped man. The rescue team used a : chainsaw to cut the log and ■ Mr Mather was flown to I Cromwell Hospital, where his

li condition was described this evening as surprisingly good. According to Senior-Ser-geant G. Cleland, of Dunedin, there were no problems with the rescue. I Mr Mather was also in- [ volved in a dramatic cliff-face rescue in Easter, 1971, in the Mount Aspiring area. “Lucky to live” According to Mr B. Moore, [chairman of the Dunedin i Safety Committee, Mr Mather is very lucky to be alive. “If he had not been well clothed and equipped, and if the weather had become worse the results could have been tragic,” he said. “This incident highlights the great dangers in travelling alone in this type of country.” He said it was the third accident of this type in recent months. “In the other two—at the (Burke and Arthur’s Passes— I both climbers are presumed [to have lost their lives.”