Couple missing in Central Australia found just before NT Police deployed massive search operation to locate them
The search for a couple believed to be missing in the Territory outback was over before it began after fresh information about their location was received.
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THE search for a couple believed to be missing in the Territory outback was over before it began after fresh information about their location was received.
An aerial search over a 500km area in the Centralian desert was imminent to find Liam Bourke, 26, and his partner, who last made contact with his family on July 9.
He was planning to travel from Alice Springs to Birdsville, Queensland, but had not arrived at his destination or contacted his family.
Northern Territory Police on Friday narrowed the search area down to about a 500km radius and deployed a small aircraft to search for the couple.
However, NT Police said in a statement late on Friday the initial information about the couple’s whereabouts was incorrect.
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“Initial information supplied to police was incorrect and after extensive investigations, police located Mr Bourke and an additional traveller accompanying him in the Kings Canyon Region today,” an NT Police spokesman said.
Prior to the couple being found safe and well, Superintendent Brett Prowse said police had confirmed the couple had travelled via Harts Range and had made it to Batton Hill.
“We know they’ve gone through the fuel stop where there’s water and now we’ve got roughly a 500km area that we’re going to start searching,” he said.
“We are using quite a lot of resources and we’ve been partnering closely with our Queensland Police counterparts.
“A small aeroplane will start searching (on Friday) from Birdsville, and will fly over to Poeppel Corner up to Lake Carolina and then over to Batton Hill.
“There’s not established tracks and there’s a lot of area in sand dune country so the plane wants to fly at an appropriate altitude so they can locate this vehicle.”
Supt Prowse said police would contact numerous travellers who had recently been through the area.
“We’re also aware of a number of people that have been travelling in that area recently and we’re going to be in contact with them as well to see if they may have come across them.
“We also have some travellers from Birdsville heading back up the reverse way through that area, through Harts Range, and they’ve got a satellite phone and they will be able to let us know if they come across them.” Supt Prowse said the couple had a “suitable four-wheel drive vehicle and had food and water”, but police were treating it as a prompt response as they couldn’t confirm the amount of resources the couple had.
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