At 2.39pm last Thursday, about two hours after he was reported missing, Roy Arbon’s phone put him in a wide-open clearing.
Just 12 minutes later, there was no sign of the West Coast tramper and his phone has not been active since.
Police say this is the latest development in the search for the 75-year-old Rūnanga man, who never returned home from a planned walk in the hills.
In a statement yesterday, police revealed he set off last Wednesday, leaving a handwritten note:
Gone for walk
Mt Davy to Mt Sewell
Back tonight or tomorrow morning
After finding the note, a concerned neighbour raised the alarm at noon on Thursday last week.
Since then, rescuers have been combing every track Mr Arbon could have taken.
On Monday, police said the rescue team got a lead after polling on Mr Arbon’s phone pinpointed his last position.
It showed that at 2.39pm last Thursday, he was in an open area, roughly 1km north of Sewell Peak’s repeater and 2km south of Mt Davy, heading south.
That appears to be the last time the phone was active, but it gave searchers a place to focus.
At 2.51pm, some 12 minutes after the phone "pinged", a police sergeant was flying over that exact location in a helicopter taking video of the search area, Senior Sergeant Kirkwood said yesterday.
"When we reviewed the footage, we couldn’t find any sign of Mr Arbon in it.
"We know his phone was absolutely in that area, and we know the polling is right — you get perfect reception up there because you’re right by the repeater.
"In this area, you’re a good distance from the cover of bush, and it would’ve been a struggle for him to walk that far that fast.
"We have spoken to two people who walked the same route in the same direction, and they didn’t see him. It’s really odd."
Snr Sgt Kirkwood said more than 750 search hours had been spent by ground teams alone. — Allied Media
