German tourist found alive after 12 days missing in Outback

Police in a helicopter spotted the tourist’s van (ABC News via AP)

German tourist Carolina Wilga has been found alive in Australia’s Outback, 12 days after she went missing and a day after her abandoned van was discovered.

The last-known sighting of the 26-year-old backpacker, and the last day family and friends heard from her, was on June 29.

She was seen at a general store in the farming village of Beacon, 200 miles north east of the Western Australia state capital Perth. Beacon had a population of 123 during the 2021 census.

A member of the public found Ms Wilga wandering on a forest trail late on Friday, Western Australia Police Force Inspector Martin Glynn said.

Carolina Wilga got lost near Beacon, Western Australia (ABC News via AP)

She was in a “fragile” state but had no serious injuries and was flown to a hospital in Perth for treatment, Mr Glynn told reporters.

“I think once we do hear her story, it will be a remarkable story,” Mr Glynn said, adding it was a “great result” for the backpacker’s family and those involved in the search.

“You know, she’s obviously coped in some amazing conditions,” he said. “There’s a very hostile environment out there, both from flora and fauna. It’s a really, really challenging environment to cope in.”

The reserve where Ms Wilga was lost covers more than 300,000 hectares. The Thursday-Friday overnight temperature was 2.6C in the area with no rain.

The crew of a police helicopter spotted her van on Thursday in wilderness in the Karroun Hill Nature Reserve, 22 miles north of Beacon, Mr Glynn said.

“Very difficult country. Huge area. So it’s a miracle they’ve actually spotted the car, to be honest,” Mr Glynn told reporters before she was found.

Police officers have been searching for the German woman (ABC News via AP)

Ground searchers on Friday scoured a heavily wooded radius of 300 metres beyond the van. Police assume Ms Wilga’s van, a 1995 Mitsubishi Delica Star Wagon, became stuck in mud on the day she left Beacon, Mr Glynn said.

The van, which has solar panels and reserves of drinking water, had recovery boards under its rear wheels that are used to give vehicles traction when they are stuck.

Police believed Ms Wilga became lost and was not the victim of crime.

Australian serial killer Ivan Milat, who died in prison in 2019, notoriously kidnapped and murdered seven backpackers from 1989 to 1992 including three Germans, two Britons and two Australians.