‘People might wonder why I left my car’: Rescued backpacker breaks her silence

German backpacker Carolina Wilga has broken her silence from her hospital bed in Perth, thanking her rescuers and addressing the mystery of why she left her car after becoming stranded in Western Australia’s outback.

Wilga was found on Friday afternoon after 12 days in the wilderness of the state’s Wheatbelt after her Mitsubishi Delica van got bogged in rough terrain in Karroun Hill, a nature reserve about 400 kilometres north-east of Perth.

Carolina Wilga says she left her car when in a state of confusion and got lost.

“Some people might wonder why I even left my car, even though I had water, food, and clothing there,” she said.

“The answer is: I lost control of the car and rolled down a slope. In the crash, I hit my head significantly. As a result of the accident, I left my car in a state of confusion and got lost.

“I am simply beyond grateful to have survived.”

Wilga’s statement was accompanied by a photo of her smiling from the end of her hospital bed in Fiona Stanley Hospital in Perth’s south.

The backpacker said she felt a part of Australian culture after her ordeal, and said WA had “taught me what it really means to be part of a true community”.

“First and foremost, I want to express a huge thank you from the bottom of my heart – a thank you that truly comes from the depth of my soul! For all the incredible supports during the search for me,” she said in the statement shared by WA police.

“Previously, I didn’t know where my place was in a culture on the other side of the world to my own, but now, I feel a part of it.

“I am deeply impressed by the courage, helpfulness, and warmth that has been shown to me here.

“Here, humanity, solidarity, and care for one another are what truly matter – and in the end, that’s what counts most.”

Wilga said she was certain she only survived thanks to the incredible outpouring of support, and saved special thanks for her rescuer, Tania Henley, who found her walking along a remote road on Friday afternoon.

“The thought of all the people who believed in me, searched for me, and kept hoping for me gave me the strength to carry on during my darkest moments. For this, I want to say thank you from the bottom of my heart,” she said.

“Especially to the police investigators, searchers, the German Consulate, the medical staff and the wonderful nurses who took care of me with so much compassion.

“My deepest thanks also go to every single person who simply thought of me – and of course, to my rescuer and angel, Tania!”

Henley was about 20 kilometres from her home on Bimbijy Station when Wilga walked out onto Mouroubra Road and waved her hands.

“It was pretty amazing, really – well, it was incredible. Twelve days missing. She had to walk through the bush for 12 days because [her car] was nowhere near where I found her, nowhere,” Henley told media after the rescue.

“She was thin, fragile – and everybody would be fragile. Twelve days to be missing out in the bush is usually not a good result, really.

“I pulled over and got out and I gave her a hug – she was crying, it was pretty emotional all right.”

On Monday morning, Premier Roger Cook said Wilga would remain in Fiona Stanley Hospital for a few more nights and that her condition continues to improve.

The last confirmed sighting of Wilga was on CCTV in the nearby town of Beacon on June 29. Police began searching for her on July 4 after her family in Germany raised the alarm.

Emergency services scoured the remote outback, which had been lashed with rain and experienced freezing temperatures over the past two weeks, before Wilga’s Delica van was found abandoned on Thursday.

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