Several agencies were called out for the search. Photo: Fire and Rescue NSW Station 338 Jindabyne Facebook.
Police say a multiagency search for a suspected missing person in the NSW Snowy Mountains may have been triggered by a vehicle’s “flashing beacons”.
A NSW Police spokesperson said a search started at about 4:45 pm on Tuesday (19 August), after skiers reported a possible sighting of someone in distress.
The skiers told police they saw bright flashes of light, which they thought could have been an SOS signal.
Police’s Alpine Operations Unit, with assistance from the State Emergency Service, Fire and Rescue NSW and NSW Ambulance, were called to Spencers Creek (near Kosciusko Road) at Charlotte Pass.
“An extensive search on snow and in the air [was launched and] failed to locate anything,” the spokesperson said.
“Early indications suggest it may have been flashing beacons from [over-snow] transport in operation in the area.”
A spokesperson for Fire and Rescue NSW’s Jindabyne station said their equipment, including a drone, was used as part of the search on Thursday, which continued into the evening.
“We use infrared cameras to detect and locate persons in this environment.
“We can share this information to crews who are searching on foot or over-snow machines to help speed up the search where ever possible and pinpoint their location.
“Day or night our aircraft is an invaluable resource that is called to assist and be part of a multiservice response to call for help from the public.”
They said it also involved support from Fire and Rescue’s Perisher unit.
