June 27, 2022
An elderly man who went missing on a large property at Coverty at the weekend was rescued on Sunday morning after spending a freezing night tangled in a barbed wire fence.
The temperature dropped to below zero as the man, aged in his 80s, struggled to free himself.
A police spokesperson said the 83-year-old man was last seen on the property, on Coverty Road, about 4:00pm on Saturday.
A search was mounted involving QAS, SES volunteers, local police and the police Dive Unit.
When the ground searchers could not find him, Polair and the Bundaberg-based RACQ LifeFlight Rescue helicopter were called in.
After conducting an aerial search for about 20 minutes on Sunday morning, the LifeFlight crew spotted the man but could not land due to the terrain.
A QAS Flight Paramedic was then winched down to assess his condition.
A LifeFlight spokesperson said the man was quickly freed from the barbed wire.
Amazingly, he suffered only minor scratches during his ordeal.
The helicopter directed police searchers on the ground to the patient.
The police Dive Team then carried the man through rough terrain to a waiting ambulance.
He was taken to Kingaroy Hospital for observation.
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Raw Video Of The Rescue
Police have released vision of Sunday’s successful search and rescue.
Featured in the video are the Police Dive Crew who were directed to the man’s location by the LifeFlight helicopter.
[UPDATED]
