Police in the Australian Northern Territory have found a 52-year-old woman who had been wanted for almost two weeks. Tamra McBeath-Riley is currently being treated in a hospital in the city of Alice Springs, among other things for lack of fluids, said Pauline Vicary of the police.
McBeath-Riley left Alice Springs on the afternoon of November 19 for a trip to the Outback with two friends. The three had been in a car. According to police, the vehicle got stuck in a river bed southwest of the city. The search for the two missing Claire Hockridge, 46, and Phu Tran, 40, also continued on Monday.
After the car breakdown, the three people were reportedly separated. McBeath-Riley had run north and found water about a mile away. "Reasonably, she seems to have stayed where the water is, and drank it," Vicary told Australian broadcaster ABC. "We are extremely relieved that we have found her alive."
UPDATE 2 - Missing trio - Alice Springs
One of the three people missing in outback Central Australia has been found to be alive during police search efforts today. https://t.co/nc0jWGQut5 pic.twitter.com/MH0qMyxg97
The other two people were probably walking west, the policewoman said. This indicates a message that was found in the car. It is therefore dated to the 21st of November. Two days later, the authorities officially received a missing person report.
Police say they've been using two helicopters since Monday morning to search for Claire Hockridge and Phu Tran.