Safety experts call for 'panic dates' after tramper's ordeal

Matthew Briggs. Photo / Supplied

Search authorities are warning trampers venturing into the bush to set a "panic date" so that if they have not returned by a particular time a search can be triggered.

The warning comes after badly injured tramper Matthew Briggs survived for eight days after falling down a bluff near the Copland Track, south of Fox Glacier on the West Coast, before taking two days to drag himself down a glacier where he was found.

He was finally flown to safety on Tuesday and, after undergoing surgery, is recovering in Grey Base Hospital, in Greymouth.

Mr Briggs, a 33-year-old Englishman who now lives in Middlemarch, Otago, has been criticised by police and search and rescue authorities for not leaving enough information about where he was going.

And he has acknowledged that he should have left more detailed intentions.

He had not written down his level of experience, or where he had parked his car.

"It was complacency because I thought I had a [locator] beacon," he said yesterday.

The Mountain Safety Council and LandSAR said the circumstances of Mr Briggs' rescue highlighted the importance of carrying a reliable means of emergency communication when venturing into the bush.

The tramper was found on Monday by hunters, who then walked 13 hours to the nearest house, south of Fox Glacier, and called for help.

Mr Smith and Mountain Safety Council spokesman Chris Tews recommended that trampers always take a reliable means of communication - either a mountain radio, satellite phone, or 406MHz emergency beacon.

"Always ensure the emergency communication device is securely affixed to your person so it is not dislodged when moving through bush or in a fall," said Mr Tews, the council's programme manager and outdoor leader.







Mr Briggs set out on a six-day tramp on March 17 with his dog, planning to tramp to the head of the Landsborough River and over the Karangarua Saddle.

On March 20 he fell down a bluff near Mt Howitt, breaking his wrist and ankle, as well as severely cutting his left leg.

After administering first aid, he realised he had either not brought his personal locator beacon with him or it had been lost in the fall.

With rations low and no help in sight, marooned tramper Mr Briggs and his faithful companion Little Dog "eyed each other up" after almost a week in the wild.

Used to his own company, he set up an emergency bivvy tent and dragged his sleeping bag out of the creek, he told a media conference yesterday.

He put Little Dog on half rations and he ate muesli bars. He put salt on his wounds to prevent gangrene and then waited. And waited. He knew friends would not raise the alarm for seven days.

Mr Briggs said he could see the Horace Walker Hut glinting in the sun in the distance as he lay injured.

Finally, he decided to fashion crutches out of tent poles and spent two days hobbling through rugged terrain and rivers to reach the hut.

After making it to the hut he saw the "most beautiful sight" of a hunter walking around the building.

- NZPA