Rescued Kosciuszko hiker Hadi Nazari released from hospital

Hiker Hadi Nazari has been given the all-clear to return home to Melbourne two days after he was rescued after a fortnight lost in the mountains of Kosciuszko National Park.

Southern NSW health authorities on Friday afternoon said the 23-year-old had been discharged from Cooma Hospital.

Hadi Nazari (left) was found by hikers, including Joshua Dart, near Blue Lake in Kosciuszko National Park on Wednesday, after a fortnight missing.Credit: Instagram

“Mr Nazari and his family thank the public for their interest and support, but request privacy so that Mr Nazari can recover well at home,” the statement read.

On Thursday, Nazari’s cousin, Hussain Ali, said the student from Berwick would make his way back to Melbourne, where he would rest for a couple of weeks.

Nazari has blisters on his feet that prevent him from walking and a few minor scratches, but no major injuries.

He went missing on Boxing Day after he separated from two friends to take some photos as they descended the Hannels Spur Trail in the NSW park, at the tail end of a multi-day trek near Australia’s highest mountain, and lost his way.

He was found by a group of hikers on Wednesday afternoon – 13 days later – as he clambered up a slope near Blue Lake, some 10 kilometres from where he had last been seen.

Jessica Dart, Joshua Dart and James Clark raised the alarm after hearing Nazari calling for help in the distance. The trio gave the disoriented man water and food, and immediately called triple zero.

As they waited for more help, Nazari “called his family on someone else’s phone, and … he was just in tears … talking to his family for the first time. [It] was hectic,” Joshua Dart told The Age on Thursday.

Within 20 minutes, Nazari was winched into a helicopter, and after a tearful reunion with loved ones at the emergency command centre in Geehi, he was taken by ambulance to Cooma Hospital.

Nazari, who survived on berries and two muesli bars he found at the remote Opera House Hut, was able to shelter from the elements using a tent.

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