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For nearly a week, his family feared the worst. Search teams covered difficult terrain, hoping to find even the smallest clue. Then, high above the Australian wilderness, a police helicopter spotted something that changed everything.
The 17-year-old, identified only as William, disappeared on November 6 while camping with a friend near Walhalla, in Victoria, Australia. He had walked away to collect additional camping equipment but took a wrong turn and became lost.
He had no phone and very little food or water. More than 100 emergency workers and volunteers joined the search, but days passed without an answer.
On November 12, the helicopter crew spotted a fishing tackle box and then noticed someone lying on a rock beside a creek. It was William.
As the helicopter circled overhead, the exhausted teenager suddenly realized rescuers had found him. He raised his arms and pumped his fists with excitement.
He had survived on water from the creek and a family-sized bag of potato chips. After six nights outdoors, he was sunburned, scratched and exhausted, but alive.
He was reunited with his mother, Elizabeth Barkley, before being taken to hospital for observation. Her message afterward was simple: her son was grounded for life.
