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Hiker's Dog Lost In A Wild New Zealand Forest Rescued By Helicopter ...
Play Hiker Reunited With Dog Lost in New Zealand ForestWELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — When a hiker fell from a 55-meter (180-foot) waterfall in wild New Zealand bush, rescuers were forced to evacuate the badly hurt woman without her dog, which couldn’t be found. After strangers raised thousands of dollars for a search, border collie Molly was flown to safety by a helicopter pilot who was determined to reunite pet and owner.A week earlier, an emergency rescue helicopter found the woman with bruises and lacerations after a fall at a rocky spot at the waterfall on the South Island’s West Coast. She was airlifted on March 24, but they were forced to leave without her pet.Molly was bedraggled and hungry when she was found Tuesday, just a few meters from the spot where the hiker had been lucky to survive.“I contacted her in hospital and said I’d go for a look for it,” said Matt Newton, the owner-operator of Precision Helicopters New Zealand, which is based at Hokitika Gorge near the Arahura River where Molly went missing. “I went and looked for the dog several times and no avail.”Unwilling to give up, Newton and his family launched a fundraiser to pay for more flying hours and advanced search gear. Offers of help and donations poured in, with strangers pledging more than 11,000 New Zealand dollars ($6,300) for a search.In this photo released by Precision Helicopters Ltd, Molly peers out of the door of a helicopter after her rescue from a waterfall on the Arahura River on the West Coast of the South Island of New Zealand, Tuesday, March 31, 2026. (Precision Helicopters Ltd via AP)It was enough to fund three more hours in a helicopter using thermal imaging equipment. On Tuesday, Newton took to the skies with a veterinary nurse, volunteer searchers and a dog named Bingo in a renewed search for Molly.“We struck jackpot within about an hour,” he said. “As we made our way up the river, we could see the dog in the thermal and then we could visually see it.”There had been no sign of Molly at the waterfall when Newton previously searched the spot, he said. It wasn’t clear if the dog had also fallen from the waterfall or if she had eventually made her way to the spot where her injured owner landed.The helicopter dropped low enough for a volunteer to disembark with the rescue dog Bingo to help coax Molly to safety and keep her calm.In this photo released by Precision Helicopters Ltd, Wayne Holmes holds his dog Bingo, left, after the rescue of Molly, right, at a waterfall o...
Hiker's lost dog rescued after week alone in wilderness
There was a sweet reunion in New Zealand when a hiker's dog was found safe after spending a week alone in the wilderness. It all started when the woman was injured in a fall in Arahura Valley ...
Hiker's dog lost in forest rescued by helicopter after strangers fund ...
Hiker's dog lost in forest rescued by helicopter after strangers fund search Apr 1, 2026 WELLINGTON, New Zealand — When a hiker fell from a 55-meter (180-foot) waterfall in wild New Zealand bush, rescuers were forced to evacuate the badly hurt woman without her dog, which couldn't be found.
Dog Is Rescued by Helicopter After a Week Lost in the Wilderness
About 160 people crowdfunded a private helicopter search to find Molly, a Border collie who was lost in the New Zealand wilderness for seven days. Molly went missing after her owner fell into a ...
