A woman who got lost running in a New Zealand forest told how she survived by drinking her own breast milk and burying herself in the earth to keep warm.
Susan O’Brien, 29, a fitness instructor, took a wrong turn during the 20km Xterra race through Rimutaka Forest Park, to the east of Wellington.
She was found this morning, 24 hours after she was due to complete the race.
Mrs O’Brien, a mother-of-two, said: “I got lost and got stuck in some bushes, I thought that was it.”
When she realised she was lost, Mrs O’Brien said she dug a hole in the ground and covered herself with soil.
She wore only lightweight running clothes and had no survival blanket.
Mrs O’Brien told The Dominion Post: “I wanted to carry on but I was just too exhausted.
“I just dug a hole...I just kept chucking dirt on top of me. I definitely thought I was going to die. Nothing else mattered but my family.
“For some reason I kept strong because I kept praying all the time.”
She added: “I’m breast-feeding my baby so I had a bit of my milk, which I thought, that should help me keep going.”
This morning Mrs O’Brien found a track and was spotted by a search party.
They took her to the rescue helicopter and after landing she was hugged by her crying mother.
Mrs O’Brien said her first priority was to feed her eight-month-old daughter, Meisha.
The 423 runners who started the run at about 9am yesterday were expected to return by 11.30am.
Search teams with dogs started looking for Mrs O’Brien at 1pm.
