A grandmother with dementia has miraculously been found in thick bushland a whole two days after she went missing.
Margaret Lowden, 83, went a whole 48 hours without any food or water and with temperatures reaching as low as 9C at night after being stranded in bushland.
Her disappearance from her care home in Mandurah, Australia, sparked an extensive search and rescue mission that saw the involvement of up to 40 State Emergency Service (SES) volunteers.
They waded through thick grass while drones and helicopters monitored the situation from the skies for any sign of life, 9News reports.
Ms Lowden had been staying at her Greenfields retirement village less than a kilometre away when she decided to go for a walk and ended up being in the "hollowed out hole".
It was only thanks to a highly trained volunteer who spotted some pressed grass that the team was able to track Ms Lowden down.
"I shudder to think what would've happened if SES crews didn't locate her," WA Police Inspector Dean Snashall said.
"I can guarantee she wouldn't have been found if SES didn't get in and dirty."
First responder David Fyfe said the grandmother was "fortunately" found in a spot where there was some sun.
But her resilience baffled responders as she got trapped "in some water and so she was wet and not clearly visible to anyone".
Thanking the emergency services for their help in rescuing her grandmother, Rita Lusted said: "It's been a really amazing outcome."
"I'd like to say thank you so much because as you can imagine we are really grateful," Ms Lusted said.
"She's very tough and feisty," she added.
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