Luke Shambrook went missing from his family’s campsite on Good Friday, sparking a huge search effort that ended when he was spotted from a helicopter

This article is more than 5 years old

This article is more than 5 years old

An 11-year-old autistic boy has been found alive after spending more than four days alone in the Australian bush.

Police in the state of Victoria released extraordinary footage of the moment searchers in a helicopter spotted Luke Shambrook, whose fate had dominated headlines in Australia over the Easter weekend.



Luke went missing about 9.30am on Good Friday from his family’s campsite at Lake Eildon, in the foothills of the Victorian alps about 100 miles north-east of Melbourne.

Fellow campers and about 40 civilian volunteers from nearby towns joined the police dog squad, air wing, motorcycles, mounted branch and 4WDs in the search. The public response was so great that police were forced to turn away volunteers.



Luke Shambrook is attended to by medical staff after being reunited with his family. Photograph: ABC

He was found about 11.55am local time on Tuesday about 1.8 miles (3km) from the campsite, after a helicopter search crew spotted him sitting among trees.

In the footage Luke was sitting on sloped ground with his legs straight out in front of him. Once his location was communicated to searchers on the ground, the camera captured the moment a rescuer ran over and crouched next to him.

Shortly after another person ran over with emergency medical supplies, pulling out a foil blanket to wrap around the boy.

Victoria Police acting assistant commissioner Rick Nugent told reporters at the scene that Luke was suffering from exhaustion, hypothermia and dehydration.

Acting Sergeant Brad Pascoe from the police air wing described the moment he spotted Luke from the helicopter.

“I just out of the corner of my eye caught a little flash of something,” Pascoe said. “It wasn’t much, but it was enough to make me get the guys to turn the aircraft around and have a further look.

“As we got closer and were able to have a better look at him, we saw that it was a person on the ground and we were able to train the camera in and confirm that it was actually Luke.

“All of us in the crew are parents ourselves and we can only imagine what the parents of Luke have been going through. It’s just such a reward for everybody’s efforts.”

Luke was “one courageous, strong, determined young man”, Nugent said. “Four days, four nights in this terrain, it really is a miracle that he’s alive and well.”

Luke’s mother kisses him after searchers bring him out of the bushland. Photograph: ABC

Photos from the scene showed Luke’s mother cradling his face and leaning in to kiss him as he was carried on a stretcher.

A message on the Luke Shambrook support page on Facebook said the family was very happy to be reunited.

“He gave Tim [his father] a big thumbs-up when they saw each other.”

The spot where Luke was found was in dense scrub and he must have climbed a number of large, steep rocks to get to his position, local radio reported. Luke’s speech is limited, so the details of his ordeal may never be known. Nugent said Luke had been unable to communicate with his rescuers but drank the water and ate a bread roll he was offered.

Despite night-time temperatures as low as 3C and rainfall in the area, Luke’s family and police had maintained optimism throughout the weekend that he would be found alive.

His family had warned searchers it was possible that Luke did not know he was lost because of his autism. They thanked those involved in the search for their son.