Heartwarming footage captured the moment that a teenager who went missing in Australian bushland for almost a week was found alive.
William, 17, was seen pumping his fists in elation when a police helicopter began hovering overhead, six days after he disappeared during a camping trip in Victoria with a pal.
He survived on a family-sized bag of crisp and sips of water from a creek – and is now ‘grounded for life’, according to his relieved mother Elizabeth Barkley.
Rescuers managed to locate William on Thursday (12 November) morning after several days of frantic searching across treacherous terrain.
His mum Elizabeth dropped him off near a campsite on Stony Creek Road in Walhalla East on 6 November to enjoy an outdoor adventure with one of his pals, before he vanished shortly afterwards.
(Victoria Police)
According to reports, the young lad took a wrong turn after heading back to the drop-off point to retrieve further camping equipment.
William ended up getting lost without his phone, food or water, while wearing only shorts and boots.
His mate raised the alarm after he failed to return, prompting officials to launch a huge search involving dozens of volunteers, police dogs, divers and helicopters.
It was the latter that proved to be the key to finding William – as a chopper scouring the bushland from above spotted a tackle box lurking around two kilometres from where he was last seen.
Victoria Police’s Air Wing then noticed the extremely sunburnt teen lying on a rock close to a creek, with those onboard saying his ‘eyes lit up’ when he realised he was being rescued.
(Victoria Police)
Video footage shows William gleefully clutching his chest and pumping his fists as his six day ordeal came to an end.
“Maybe the tackle box with him saved him,” Victoria Police Acting Inspector Jason Benbow told reporters. “He didn’t even think people were searching for him, he had no idea how he was going to get out of there.
“And honestly, I think he could have survived a couple more days.”
The rescue team were equally as moved when they tracked William down, as Benbow pointed out happy endings like this ‘don’t happen all the time’.
“I’m sure he’s got a story to tell us soon, which we’re very keen to hear,” he added.
You can take a look at the moment William was rescued here:
How William survived six days in the bush
William’s mum confirmed as much when discussing how relieved she was that her son was found alive.
Describing his rescue as a ‘miracle’, Elizabeth told 9News she ‘just lost it’ when the teenager was found, saying: “It’s been horrible the past couple of days, my prayers have been answered. I’m just over the moon.”
William’s mum told the publication that although he has never been camping before, he was astute enough to stay in the same place rather than wandering deeper into the bushland.
Revealing how he sustained himself during his six-day nightmare, Elizabeth said: “He drank water from the creek…had Smith’s potato chips, a family-size pack, that went in two days.
“He fell down a cliff, he had a lot of scratches and sore legs. He had a couple of towels to cover himself up.”
(Victoria Police)
Those who found William fed him a doughnut and gave him a bottle of water before taking him to hospital.
When he was reunited with his mother, she hilariously told the teen: “Don’t ever do that again! You’re never leaving my sight again. You scared the s**t out of me. Yes, you’re grounded.”
Elizabeth said her son was ‘feeling cold, scared, alone, hungry and thirsty’ – and plans on making a ‘big McDonald’s order’ when he is able to stomach it.
Despite battling freezing temperatures overnight and baking under the hot sun during the day, William only sustained minor injuries and is said to be in ‘good spirits’.
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