Boy found alive after 6 days lost in Australian wilderness: “He’s grounded for life”

Updated on: November 12, 2026 / 6:52 AM EST / CBS/AP

A 17-year-old boy with autism was found alive Thursday after six days lost in eastern Australian woodlands.

The boy, whom police identified only as William, had begun camping with a teenage friend when he disappeared last Friday near Walhalla, a former gold-mining town 185 kilometers (115 miles) east of Melbourne, police said.

A police helicopter crew found him surrounded by wilderness lying asleep on a flat rock beside a creek, and he was later reunited with his mother. William was in good spirits and mostly in good health, the police statement said.

Video shot from the rescue helicopter showed he was shirtless and sunburned. He was wearing shorts and boots and was using towels as blankets.

"I'm just over the moon that he's alive," his mother, Elizabeth, told reporters. The AP has decided not to provide her family name to avoid identifying her son.

"And he's never leaving the house again. He's grounded for life. He's not going anywhere ever again," she joked.

Police video showed Elizabeth embrace her son after the rescue helicopter landed to complete its mission.

William was later taken to a hospital for his health…

Original source: https://www.cbsnews.com/world/