Climbers survive 200m fall

Two Australian climbers were lucky to survive a 200-metre fall in the Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park yesterday.

The men, both described as experienced climbers in their 20s, fell after one of them lost his footing as they climbed the track to Kelman Hut, near Mt Annan.

They were tied to each other and Department of Conservation area manager Richard McNamara told the Timaru Herald there was little they could have done to prevent the fall.

He said when one of them slipped on a ledge, they both fell.

"I guess it must have been a lapse in concentration. The climbers did pretty much everything right, they had the correct equipment, including safety beacons and flares, they were experienced climbers and weren't doing anything rash."

A guide spotted the pair and a rescue team attended them.

One of the climbers was in a stable condition in Timaru Hospital having broken his ankle and leg.

Meanwhile Fiordland search and rescue teams had a busy day yesterday, having to retrieve two parties of stranded trampers from the Milford and Dusky tracks.

Constable Andy Grant, of Te Anau, told the Southland Times five Australian tourists - three men and two women - became stranded on the Dusky track after heavy rains turned where they were into an island near the Seaforth River.

They activated their emergency locator beacon about 3pm and were picked up by a helicopter and flown to te Anau.

At the same time, a woman was rescued by helicopter from the Milford side of the MacKinnon Pass on the Milford track after she fell and was thought to have broken an ankle.

- NZPA