Search and Rescue teams assist woman on Mt Holdsworth after battling strong winds

Sunday, 12 September 2021

A Search and Rescue team assisted a woman to Powell Hut, Mt Holdsworth, where they will spend the night after she struggled to walk through strong wind gusts.

Search and Rescue (SAR) teams were called to assist a woman after she battled strong wind gusts while walking a popular track in the Tararua Ranges.

Police were called at 11.05am on Sunday after a 35-year-old Kapiti woman requested help when she became stranded in the alpine environment near Mt Holdsworth, east of Masterton.

She had been hiking solo between Jumbo Hut and Powell Hut and was blown over several times by severe gale winds.

She was stranded at 1400 metres altitude and was unable to continue in the prevailing rain and wind conditions. The wind chill factor was minus five degrees Celsius.

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A rescue team was sent to her location, which included five LandSAR members, one police SAR and one Wellington Free Ambulance paramedic.

Weather in the open country above the bush line was described as “horrendous” by the rescue team, and was expected to deteriorate further overnight with heavy rain forecast for Monday morning.

After seeking help the woman remained at a location where she could be found, sought shelter from the wind and used her sleeping bag to maintain warmth until the rescue party arrived.

The woman was not injured but was suffering from mild hypothermia.

Police said the walker was “well-equipped” and the team had been in regular contact with her throughout the day.

The rescue team carried dry clothing and a sleeping bag to replace the wet items worn by the woman.

A police spokesperson said the rescue team reached the woman at 5.40pm.