Thread: Amateur Hour in Pirongia

Waikato pig hunters call for help gets rescuers lost too

When a pair of pig hunters got lost in the darkness of Waikato bushland, one made a call to her mother for help.

What started as a rescue of two people then quickly turned into a midnight search for six.

The hunters, 25 and 26, entered Pirongia Forest Park off Corcoran Rd on Tuesday afternoon, Sergeant Warren Shaw, of Waikato police said.

The 135 square kilometre plot located 30km southwest of Hamilton spans four blocks of land with areas allocated for pig hunting.

They didn't appear to be staying longer than the afternoon and definitely weren't prepared to be in the bush overnight when they lost the light, Shaw said.

"Their GPS failed and they had no map or compass, or a decent torch."

From Te Kuiti, the pair were not familiar with the area and by 7.30pm found themselves lost in the darkness, he said.

"Whenever you're going into the bush take a torch, batteries and a basic kit so if you have to stay the night you can."

It was understood that a phone call was made to the lost woman's mother.

The mother, partner and two friends of the 26-year-old man, then decided to head into the bush to search for the pair themselves, Shaw said.

"So four others - from Te Kuiti and Te Awamutu - had gone into the bush and they didn't have the right gear with them either."

Two of the lads managed to locate the hunters by tracking the GPS on their dogs' collars.

"Then they started running out of light.

"It wasn't called into us until quite late and we had been told that some of the party that had gone in were coming out but they didn't arrive."

Volunteer Matt Hazard, along with Graeme Hill and dog Gemma, began the search from Corcoran Rd and managed to locate them a short time later.

He said the six were found at slightly different locations along the same track. The last ones were brought out of the bush around 1.30am.

"They were wet and cold, but fine."

"A bit of preparedness and we wouldn't have had to send the search volunteers in."

https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/956...cuers-lost-too