British teen goes missing in Australia

Helicopters and army trackers were brought in today to help search for a British teenager missing in tropical northeast Australia.

Louise Saunders, 19, from Kidderminster in Worcestershire, was last seen on Tuesday morning walking alone along a track at the summit of Mt Tyson near the town of Tully in north Queensland state.

Miss Saunders told a friend she would be back in Tully, 800 miles north of Brisbane, by late afternoon and when she did not arrive her friend called the police.

A search for the teenager was launched shortly afterwards but has so far yielded no clues.

“We are conducting searches today with helicopters, army trackers and state emergency services and police,” Queensland state police sergeant Gavin Marsh said, adding that officers were not yet aware of any suspicious circumstances surrounding Miss Saunders’ disappearance.

Miss Saunders’ mother Liz said yesterday that she was hopeful her daughter would be found alive.

“Police have been searching all over the mountain and have not found her and they think she may have gone into the rain forest next to Mt Tyson,” she said. “If she has gone in there, it is so dense she would not be able to find her way.”

Louise Saunders arrived in Australia in June for a year-long holiday.