By Catherine Naylor
A Canberra bushwalker reported missing in the Snowy Mountains has been found alive after spending the night lost in blizzard conditions near Thredbo.
Police say 61-year-old Bing Wei spent the night walking on Mount Kosciuszko after becoming lost when the weather turned yesterday afternoon.
The temperature overnight at Thredbo top station fell to minus 8 degrees, with wind gusts of up to 63 km/h.
Conditions near the top of Mount Kosciuszko on Sunday morning.Credit: Thredbo Live Cam
“He is lucky because he kept himself moving, and he had appropriate clothing on,” Inspector Josh Beaumont, from Monaro police, said.
“He was working his way through trails to find his way back to Thredbo ... he continued to walk through the night until he was located in the morning.”
Hiker Bing Wei travelled to Thredbo from Canberra.
Wei was found on The Alpine Way at Thredbo just before 9am, when a member of the public spotted him on the side of the road and alerted State Emergency Service volunteers who were searching for him nearby.
He had set out to reach the summit of Mount Kosciuszko yesterday afternoon and was on his way back down when the weather turned and he became disoriented.
He then lost his mobile phone, which made it more difficult for him to find the trail back down to Thredbo village, forcing to spend one of the coldest nights of the year outdoors on the mountain.
Police say he was dressed appropriately for the conditions, and had snow shoes and some experience.
“He was in a very good condition,” Beaumont said. “He was still in high spirits because he’d found his way back.
“He was just embarrassed that emergency services had to utilise all its resources to locate him, but he was very appreciative of all the efforts of everybody involved.”
Emergency services took Wei to Jindabyne, where NSW Ambulance paramedics found him to be cold but uninjured. He refused transport to hospital and returned home.
Snowy Mountains Backcountry ski tour operator Doug Chatten, who used to work in alpine rescue, said the case showed how important it was for anyone heading out into alpine areas to be prepared for at least 24 hours of survival.
“I reckon he’s lucky to spend a night out at minus eight. It’s something he’s not going to forget ... it would have been a very long and uncomfortable night.”
Wei was reported missing on Saturday night after setting out from Canberra earlier that day.
He last had contact with a friend about 2.30pm, telling them he was at a chairlift at Thredbo. His friend raised the alarm when he did not return home and could not be contacted.
Wei’s car was then found at Cascades car park near Dead Horse Gap, about seven kilometres south-west of Thredbo, prompting police and State Emergency Service volunteers trained in alpine operations to set out on foot to look for him about 10.30pm.
The search, which included drones, continued through the night, with police holding serious concerns for Wei’s welfare due to “extremely challenging weather conditions with snow, wind and poor visibility”.
A cold front swept through the mountains about lunchtime on Saturday, after weeks of warm weather that has forced most ski resorts to end the season early.
Thredbo closed for skiing and snowboarding on Wednesday, but its main Kosciuszko chairlift is still taking foot passengers to the top for scenic rides and to give experienced skiers and boarders access into the back country.
“I spent a night out without a sleeping bag, in a snow cave [for training], and it was about minus three and it was such a long, cold night.”
Doug Chatten
Chatten said those heading outdoors in alpine areas should always carry a down jacket, gloves and a beanie, a mat to sit on and an emergency shelter, no matter what the season, as well as food, water and a first aid kit.
“If you’ve got those things, you can put all your clothes on, your down jacket on, sit on your little sit-mat and pull your shelter over you. You mightn’t be comfortable but you’re going to be good.
“I spent a night out without a sleeping bag, in a snow cave [for a training exercise], and it was about minus three and it was such a long, cold night.”
Beaumont said it was important anyone heading into alpine areas fill out a “trip intention” form on the NPWS website, and share their plans with someone who can raise the alarm.
“The weather can turn so quickly, in all those alpine regions,” Beaumont said.
“It’s not for the fainthearted, it really isn’t.”
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