Three teenagers were rescued from their bogged car south of Kalbarri on Saturday after a ‘HELP’ message they wrote in the sand was detected by a plane.
At around 3pm Air Traffic Control notified WA Police Force they had received information from the pilot of a plane that they had seen near Pink Lake.
Three teenagers were rescued from their bogged vehicle 27 nautical miles from Kalbarri.
A WA Police spokeswoman said officers from Kalbarri Police and Mid West – Gascoyne Traffic were deployed to the area to establish the nature of the emergency.
“About half an hour later a second report was received, advising a person on board another plane had seen the same distress message,” she said.
“WA Police Force requested the assistance of the Australian Maritime Safety Authority, who had their Perth-based Challenger jet in the area.
“The AMSA Challenger jet flew over the area and was able to provide police with GPS coordinators of the stranded vehicle.“
The trio were stranded for six hours.Credit: AMSA
Police officers drove as close to the area they could, before the incoming tide on the beachside and the rough terrain on the other side of the stranded group prevented them from driving any further.
They proceeded on foot across scrub and the dry lake to where the vehicle – a white Holden Colorado – was and located the three teenagers uninjured.