Children, aged 8 and 11, found safe and well after going missing overnight in remote Southland bush

• Two children, aged 8 and 11, have been found safe and well after being missing overnight in remote Southland bush.
• The pair set out for a walk from a DOC campground near Mavora Lake on Saturday afternoon.
• A massive land and air search was carried out from early Sunday morning

Two children, aged 8 and 11, have been found safe and well after going missing overnight in remote Southland bush.

The 8-year-old-boy and 11-year-old girl did not return from a bush walk at Mavora Lakes Road after they set out at 2.30pm on Saturday from a campground at the northern end of the road, police said.

Searchers had been looking for the pair overnight.

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Police confirmed they were found about 10am on Sunday at a clearing near the lake about 1.5km from the campground.

The children were being taken back to the search base for medical assessments.

“Police wish to thank everyone who was involved in the search overnight and this morning, including volunteers who travelled from around the Southern region to join the search, southern area commander Mike Bowman said.

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Mavora Lakes Rd runs along the east side of the Mararoa River between Te Anau and Kingston.

Southland District Mayor Rob Scott said 45 searchers were involved by 8.15am on Sunday.

“The search and rescue team is top-notch. They definitely have the right people on the ground,” he said.

The area was “pretty remote” but the campground was popular and likely had a few families there for the school holidays. There were a variety of tracks towards the lake, river, and hills from the campground, which is split into two sections.

Southland District councillor Tom O’Brien said the area around the campground was relatively flat and open but with some beech forest near the lake before it got mountainous further away.

“There’s been quite a bit of rain but the temperature has been not as cold as it has been,” he said.

MetService meteorologist April Clark said the overnight low in the closest station to the site, at Lumsden, was 6.6C. There was cloud and westerly winds on Saturday and a light shower early on Sunday morning.

The forecast for Sunday was some isolated showers but clearing to fine spells.

Lloyd Matheson, from Southern Lakes Helicopter, had been on standby on Sunday morning to replace a crew that had been searching through the night.

The Department of Conservation Mavora Lakes Campsite is split into two areas – one alongside south Mavora Lake and the other between South Mavora Lake and North Mavora Lake.

A Fire and Emergency NZ spokesperson said crews from Invercargill had been helping police with the search operation since Saturday night.