Western Australian Police having rescued New Zealand woman 84-year-old Patrica Byrne from the bush near Perth. Photo / Supplied
Western Australian Police having rescued New Zealand woman 84-year-old Patrica Byrne from the bush near Perth. Photo / Supplied
An 84-year-old Kiwi who survived for three days in remote Western Australia bushland has found humour in her ordeal.
Patricia Byrne - a teacher aide at Whangamata Area School - was missing for three days after sitting to take a rest while on a bush walk in the Stirling Ranges National Park with her family.
The great-grandmother had not been seen since 11.30am last Thursday and was found walking on the side of a road on Sunday about 4km from where she was last seen.
She is now recovering in Albany Hospital, where she told media she lost her way when she emerged from bushland and realised she had lost sight of her relatives.
Byrne said she expected to find her way back to them by following a creek bed.
"I sort of lost my way but I figured if I followed the creek bed I would end up at the right place. But now I have been told the creek bed divides or something," she told ABC News.
Byrne took on high temperatures and strong winds, and had no food, but said she was not frightened or seriously worried during the ordeal.
"Not really no, I didn't think I was lost," she said.
Western Australian Police having rescued New Zealand woman 84-year-old Patrica Byrne from the bush near Perth. Photo / Supplied
She also joked about the time it took for her family to realise she was missing.
"The first night I thought perhaps they will realise I am not there. The second night I thought, oh hello, perhaps they might have noticed that I wasn't at breakfast," she told ABC News.
"I thought this crowd were a bit slack and hadn't noticed that I am not there for breakfast or you know."
Yesterday Byrne's daughter Caroline Sherborne said she had feared the worst when her mother went missing.
"To be honest I thought I was coming to plan a funeral," she said.
"As soon as the plane came in to land I felt sick, but my son turned on his phone and said 'I've got a message - she's alive!'.
"So there was great jubilation among the passengers sitting around us."
Sherborne said her mother was very fit and healthy and not on any medications. She had not eaten while she was lost in the bush.
"She's just amazing, I can't wait to hear her story of how she survived."
