Woman survives snake bite for days in Australia's Snowy Mountains

A woman who disappeared while hiking alone in Australia's Snowy Mountains was found “dazed and injured” on Sunday, police said, after suffering a suspected snake bite during her nearly two-week absence.

Lovisa Sjoberg, 48, was discovered by rescuers on Sunday afternoon as she walked along a bush path in Kosciuszko National Park, southwest of the capital Canberra.

New South Wales Police Commissioner Toby Lindsay said on Monday she was “lucky to be alive” after being bitten by a snake, possibly a copperhead. The venomous species can cause a painful bite that can result in death without medical attention.

“She states that about four days earlier she was bitten by a snake, twisted her ankle and was dehydrated,” Lindsay said. “She’s actually very lucky to be alive and has been through a pretty tough time.”

It's unknown how long Sjoberg was missing in the wilderness – she was last seen driving a rental car on October 15.

Police only began investigating her whereabouts last Monday after the car rental company said her vehicle had not been returned.

Officers tracked the car to Kiandra, a former gold mining town near the mountains, and investigated the theory that Sjoberg, an avid photographer and experienced hiker, had become lost in the wilderness when she set out on foot.

Police sent helicopters, planes and search parties by road, foot and horseback for six days before discovering her on Sunday.

The northern part of Kosciuszko National Park recently reopened to visitors after an annual winter closure. The park was closed two months earlier this year to allow the aerial killing of deer, pigs and wild horses called brumbies to protect the alpine environment.

Sjoberg has an Instagram account dedicated to images of wild horses, and members of Brumby advocacy groups expressed serious concern for their welfare on social media.

Plans by the New South Wales National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) to shoot brumbies from helicopters led to the collapse of a legal attempt to stop the killing this year.

The government said the killing was necessary to protect native plants and animals in the Alpine wilderness, which are vulnerable to damage from large numbers of wild animals.

The Snowy Mountains are part of the Great Dividing Range, a mountainous region approximately 2,300 miles (3,700 kilometers) long that is home to some of Australia's highest peaks. It is popular with hikers and skiers who visit nearby ski resorts during the annual ski season.

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