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New details have emerged of the harrowing ordeal German backpacker Carolina Wilga endured in WA’s outback, a year on from her remarkable rescue.
Wilga was exposed to freezing temperatures after her van ran into mechanical issues and she got lost for 11 nights in the state’s Wheatbelt, before being rescued by Tania Henley, who came across her as she was returning to Bimbijy Station after a shopping trip.
Now, a year on from Wilga’s rescue, Henley has revealed more details of the backpacker’s experience, including frostbite, a book deal, and a thank-you from across the world.
In an interview with 9News Perth, Henley recalled the moment she stumbled across Wilga along the side of Mouroubra Road, near where she became lost in Karroun Hill.
“There she was on the road, going like that [Henley waves her hands],” she said.
“I mean I thought she was dead and she thought she was going to die.”
The 26-year-old’s story of survival made international headlines, with the image of her stepping onto a police jet now famous.
WA Police Detective Jessica Securo led the search, with more than 100 officers on the case, facing difficult conditions in remote WA.
CCTV of Wilga’s last known movements was shared across the nation before, in the first glimmer of hope, her beaten-up van was found bogged.
“As time went on the concern for her safety grew and at times wondered if we would find her alive,” Securo told 9News Perth.
A day later, the backpacker stumbled onto Mouroubra Road as Henley drove around the corner, her “unusually” packed full of snacks.
“She said, ‘I saw there was a lady going to give me an apple’, how do you get around that?” Henley recalled.
The pair drove an hour to emergency crews who were on standby, but Henley said there was no time for “thank-yous” or a goodbye.
However, months after she was found, Wilga thanked her rescuer in a text message.
“She said it was 12 degrees and raining, no snow and feels like Australia in winter … I think that’s half of how she survived so well,” Henley said.
Despite spending six days at Fiona Stanley Hospital ravaged with mosquito bites, the extent of her injuries remained unclear, until she disclosed them to Henley.
“She got frostbite on her feet and when I found her she had one of her feet … wrapped up with her scarf,” she said.
The tiny Wheatbelt town was thrust into the spotlight when Wilga was found alive, and now, the German backpacker has reportedly been offered a publishing deal.
Henley said she hoped to be reunited with Wilga at some point in the future.
“Well it has changed my life, for better or worse, finding her – maybe my outlook on life,” she said.
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