Injured Walker Mt Owen, Queenstown

A 22 year old Queenstown man was rescued by the Westpac Police Rescue Helicopter at approximately 5:30am this morning having spent the night lost on Mt Owen, east of Queenstown.

The man had set off late yesterday afternoon and contacted his family via SMS before his phone battery went flat to say he had left the marked track then fallen and injured his leg.  He was unable to provide his exact location.

His family contacted police at around 8:00pm.  Local officers searched for him for several hours before the Helicopter was deployed.  The rescue crew located him at the top of a cliff on the western face of Mt Owen.

The man was treated for mild hypothermia; the extent of the leg injury is unknown at this stage but not believed to be serious.