Press Release – Life Flight Trust
At around 2 pm this afternoon the Rescue Coordination Centre Tasked the life Flight Trust to search for a missing tramper who was last seen somewhere on the Mt Matthews Track in the Rimutaka Forest Park.

The man, in his 70s, was well prepared and had an emergency locater beacon which he activated. The Life Flight team tracked the signal from the beacon.

The Westpac rescue helicopter found the man in the South Saddle area of Mt Matthews.

Due to the nature of the terrain, landing the Helicopter at the scene was not an option so the crew winched a Wellington Free Ambulance Paramedic down to the man.

They were then both winched onboard the helicopter.

The man had become lost during his bush walk but was uninjured. He was dropped off at Big Bend on the Orongorongo river, from where he planned to walk out.

The Life Flight Trust is a charity providing air rescue and air ambulance services. It operates the Wellington based Westpac Rescue Helicopter and a national air ambulance service. It relies on support from the public and sponsorship from partners such as Westpac to provide these services. Further information can be obtained from www.lifeflight.org.nz

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