Summarize this content to 2000 words in 6 paragraphs “And before you know it, there’s about 10 of us there. All formed around him, hugging him, offering him water, offering him food.“I called triple zero and talked to police and they brought a helicopter in … and in the meantime, he called his family on someone else’s phone, and … he was just in tears. He’s crying, talking to his family for the first time. [It] was hectic.”Dart said Nazari – who had survived on foraged berries and two muesli bars – was in good spirits and cracked jokes, then shook everyone’s hand before he was winched out by helicopter.Nazari issued a statement on Thursday afternoon, saying: “I would like to thank all of the emergency services personnel for their tireless work searching for 13 days in tough conditions, to locate me.“I would also like to thank members of the public, family and friends for their well-wishes and prayers.”After a tearful reunion with loved ones at the emergency command centre in Geehi, Nazari was taken by ambulance to Cooma Hospital.Nazari with rescue personnel in the helicopter that winched him to safety.Credit: NSW PoliceHe asked for privacy as he continued to recover.Outside the hospital in Cooma, Nazari’s cousin Hussain Ali said his family were hopeful the 23-year-old would be discharged on Thursday.“He was really grateful to God that he’s safe and sound, and [he is in] really good condition. We were surprised,” Ali said. “He had a sandwich last night and a few Powerades, and he was excited to eat.”Nazari had blisters on his feet that meant he could not walk and a few minor scratches, but no major injury, Ali said.The 23-year-old planned to rest for a couple of weeks once he returned to Melbourne, his cousin said.“When he’s completely fit and fine, then he’ll see how he goes. When we found him, he was keen to go for another hike and I was like, ‘No mate, no more hiking for you.’” Ali said.“He can write a book, or there will be a movie on him as well. Surviving on that mountain, it’s not easy for 13 days and nights.”Nazari went missing on December 26 after he was separated from two friends as they descended the Hannels Spur Trail in the NSW park, at the tail end of a multi-day trek near Australia’s highest mountain.Speaking at Geehi on Wednesday, NSW Police Inspector Josh Broadfoot said the search – which involved more than 300 people – was one of the longest successful land searches for a missing person he could remember.Nazari reported seeing helicopters flying overhead as rescuers scoured the bushland, Broadfoot said, but they could not spot him in the dense terrain.“It’s a massive effort for him to have gotten here to there,” Broadfoot said. “We’ve had a chat to Hadi, and he said he’s pretty much just been up and just walking from morning to night.”On January 5, searchers found Nazari’s camera, camera case and evidence of a campfire.Paramedics at Geehi treated him for dehydration before taking him to hospital, where he was happy and in “remarkable” condition for the length of time he was missing, NSW Ambulance’s Adam Mower said.Hiking guide Keith Scott has traversed the Hannels Spur trail – where Nazari went missing – dozens of times, and said it was always worth carrying emergency communication equipment.“It’s incredibly steep, and the undergrowth is incredibly thick. So it just means that energy reserves [get] used up pretty quickly when you’re trying to push your way through,” Scott said.“Particularly in country like that, you really do need to be carrying an emergency beacon and preferably a GPS.”With Cassandra MorganThe Morning Edition newsletter is our guide to the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up here.
