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Robbed and Left for Dead in the Australian Outback | The Ricky Megee Story — Transcript

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0:00for all its beauty and Splendor the
0:02Wilderness can be a cruel teacher the
0:04desert is a unique and fascinating
0:05environment that is both great and
0:07dangerous the characteristics of the
0:09desert make it both awe-inspiring and
0:12potentially deadly the desert is a place
0:14of contrasts offering incredible natural
0:17beauty and unique Wildlife as well as
0:19significant challenges and dangers
0:21anyone venturing into the desert should
0:24take precautions and be well prepared
0:26for the conditions they may encounter
0:27please click the Subscribe and like
0:30buttons this is outdoor disasters
0:40the Australian outback is a vast rugged
0:42landscape that covers much of the
0:44continent it's an environment of
0:46extremes with harsh weather conditions a
0:49sparse population and unique flora and
0:52fauna that have adapted to the
0:54challenging conditions the Outback
0:56covers around 70 percent of Australia's
0:59land mass and is located in the Central
1:01and western parts of the country
1:03the Outback has a mostly arid or
1:06semi-arid climate with very low rainfall
1:08and high temperatures
1:10Summers can be scorching with
1:12temperatures often reaching over 104
1:14degrees Fahrenheit Winters can be cold
1:17with temperatures dropping to below
1:18freezing in some areas the Outback is
1:21characterized by sparse vegetation with
1:24plants adapted to the Arid conditions
1:26despite the harsh conditions the Outback
1:28is home to diverse Wildlife is a popular
1:31destination for tourists looking to
1:33experience its unique Landscapes and
1:35Wildlife it is a challenging and
1:37beautiful environment that has a unique
1:39and fascinating character it's a place
1:41of contrast offering incredible natural
1:44beauty as well as significant challenges
1:46and dangers
1:47anyone venturing into the Outback should
1:49take precautions and be well prepared
1:51for the conditions they may encounter
1:54still for those willing to embrace the
1:56challenges the Outback offers an
1:58unforgettable experience
2:00for Rick mcmeggy his Outback experience
2:03would truly be an unforgettable
2:05nightmare
2:06Ricky McGee at the time a 35 year old
2:09had been offered work in a government
2:11Department in Port Hedland Western
2:13Australia
2:14he accepted the job and set off on the
2:17long drive which he had made multiple
2:19times before
2:21driving a 2001 Mitsubishi Challenger he
2:24took the buntine highway which for much
2:26of his journey was a desert track across
2:28the Outback of the Northern Territory
2:31because he had a couple of days before
2:32starting his new job he wanted to visit
2:34an old mate so decided to take a detour
2:37and drive to Halls Creek where his
2:39friend resided
2:41he turned left off the Stewart Highway
2:43near dunmara about 300 miles south of
2:45Darwin and hit the dirt of the Buchanan
2:48Highway heading towards top Springs
2:50by taking the shortcut he was confident
2:52he'd make it to Halls Creek before dusk
2:54the road was not much more than a goat
2:56track and had its fair share of potholes
2:58but it saved a couple of hours not
3:00sticking to the highway hours later he
3:03came across some stranded Aboriginal
3:05people they flagged him over next to
3:07their broken down Kingswood not many
3:09vehicles traveled the bunting in January
3:11because it's mostly dirt and the road
3:13can get washed out in the wet season
3:16he knew if he drove past them they'd be
3:18waiting in the Sun for a while
3:20he pulled up a safe distance in front of
3:22the Kingswood and indicated for one of
3:24them to come and explain what they
3:25needed
3:26all the doors of his car were locked and
3:29the windows wound up except for the
3:30front seat passenger side he wanted to
3:33have his bases covered if they tried
3:34anything there would be no opportunity
3:36to punch him if he hit the gas he also
3:39had his machete the stranded man
3:41explained they'd run out of fuel and
3:43needed a lift to Halls Creek he
3:45indicated for him to get in he gave him
3:47a cold beer and they were off
3:49about 20 minutes in across the top edge
3:52of the western desert he was out of beer
3:55the passenger cracked another one and
3:57opened it for him
3:58that was the only time I took my eyes
4:00off my drink for the entire trip Ricky
4:02said
4:03after 10 minutes he began to feel groggy
4:06his vision had warped it wasn't as if
4:08this was the first time he'd ever had a
4:10few cans driving through nowhere
4:12but it had never come to this they were
4:15only a couple of hours away from Halls
4:16Creek he kept driving despite the
4:19feeling but he couldn't shake the
4:20feeling of incredible lethargy
4:23meanwhile his Silent Passenger sat back
4:26and cracked himself another can he
4:28didn't seem concerned at all by The
4:29Reckless swerving across the road Ricky
4:32McGee doesn't remember anything much
4:33after that when Ricky opened his eyes he
4:36was sitting in the front passenger seat
4:37of his car
4:39what was going on the car wasn't moving
4:41when I raised my head I could see it was
4:43parked on the side of a dirt Highway he
4:45said he gets out of the car to have a
4:48look around he heard some voices that
4:50were coming from behind some bushes as
4:52he approached the voices dropped groggly
4:55he turned to walk back to the car and
4:57got in the driver's seat and was about
4:59to hit the gas when he saw a figure out
5:01of the corner of his eye
5:03in a Flash the man jumped from the
5:05shadows and onto the footstools on the
5:07back of the car he floors it down the
5:09dirt Highway trying to shake the figure
5:11off the rear but he had a spider-like
5:13grip and didn't budge using a rock he
5:16smashed the back window of Ricky's car
5:18vehicle to force his way in the next
5:20thing Ricky knew they were fighting
5:22while bumping along the dirt Highway at
5:24well over 60 miles per hour then they
5:27slammed into some bushes on the side of
5:29the road Ricky got out gingerly and
5:31disoriented he looks and sees the figure
5:35running off into the darkness
5:37hours later Maggie is sitting on the
5:40side of the road disoriented trying to
5:42come to grips with what is happening
5:43when he sees people rummaging through
5:45his car looking for anything of value
5:48soon a young Aboriginal man comes over
5:50with a bottle of booze telling Ricky not
5:52to say anything with nothing to lose
5:54Ricky takes a swig and again passes out
5:57when he regained Consciousness he was in
5:59a hole covered in black plastic with
6:01some rocks and dirt thrown on top
6:03something was spread over my face sand I
6:07wiggled my toes no shoes I struggled to
6:09move felt my pockets for my light or
6:10nothing cigarettes gone where was I I
6:13had no clue something was pushing
6:15through the tarp the sound of sniffing
6:17dogs maybe I wriggled and pushed myself
6:19up forcing back the cover into daylight
6:21and Heat
6:23now I was face to face with a pack of
6:25dingoes ready to sit down to dinner
6:27Ricky said
6:29only the attempts by four dingoes to
6:31claw him woke him up in the middle of
6:33the desert baking in the hot sun
6:35confusion overtook him as he tried to
6:37understand what had happened he was left
6:39for dead
6:41he sat down in the shade for hours
6:42pondering his predicament nobody in
6:45sight no roads no houses no water
6:48nothing just desert
6:51to get more familiar with his
6:52surroundings he climbed a tree and
6:54scanned The Horizon
6:56I was a completely different landscape
6:58from where I had been the day before or
7:00however many days it had been since
7:01being robbed
7:03the country was a lot more Barren
7:04leaving me with the impression I was
7:06even more isolated I was lost I was
7:09hungry I was thirsty
7:11I was still feeling the effects of
7:13whatever it was I'd been drugged with
7:14during what I assumed was the past two
7:16days it was hot and no one besides the
7:19arseholes who'd left me there for dead
7:20had the slightest clue where to start
7:22looking for me Ricky said
7:24after getting his bearings from the sun
7:26he figured Due West was the best
7:28direction to find civilization
7:30hours into his Trek it occurred to him
7:32that he was probably walking further
7:34into the desolate interior so he turned
7:36back east in the hope of stumbling
7:38across a road or a river leading towards
7:41a homestead he couldn't see any roads so
7:43he headed for a big rise on the horizon
7:45to get a better view when he reached the
7:47rise all he saw was scrub and bare earth
7:50now he was getting extremely thirsty
7:52with no water source anywhere close he
7:55started to contemplate the unthinkable
7:57if you have to drink urine I suggest you
7:59let it cool down first it doesn't taste
8:01very nice Ricky said
8:03trekking Barefoot his feet were already
8:05starting to soar and bleed the sun
8:07started to set and now it was getting
8:09cold there wasn't much time in the
8:11comfort zone between the two extremes
8:13all Ricky wanted to do was keep walking
8:15find a road and get out of this
8:17situation
8:18when it got too dark he nestled next to
8:21some foliage trying to get some sleep
8:23by midnight it started raining the
8:26replenishment of the water was an
8:27incredible relief
8:29he cupped his hands and gulped down as
8:31much as he could
8:32for the next few days Ricky McGee
8:34wandered through the desert chasing
8:36potential rain clouds and drinking his
8:38urine still no roads in sight
8:41he kept falling over as the weight of
8:42dehydration pulled him down
8:44his main priority at this point was to
8:46find a water source he staggered through
8:49some sparse scrub for a few more miles
8:51before finding the first sign of water
8:53which was wet mud
8:55he managed a few precious drops scraped
8:57out of the ground
8:58then he continued walking he followed a
9:01trail of wet patches that soon turned
9:03into puddles and the puddles to sloshy
9:05channels eventually finding his way to
9:07the edge of a thriving River it was an
9:09incredible feeling to see such a torrent
9:11of water carving its way through the
9:13desert I couldn't believe my luck and
9:15wasted no time diving in to get my fill
9:18a sea of Salvation in the shape of a
9:20seasonal river flowing South I praise
9:23the Lord or whatever caused me to Cross
9:24its path he said
9:26one minute Ricky was on the verge of
9:28death by dehydration the next he was
9:31flapping about in the current of a river
9:33if my luck kept running like that I'd be
9:35eating hamburgers for dinner he thought
9:36to himself by now Ricky McGee assumed
9:39all of his troubles were solved fresh
9:41water a cool respite from the Heat and a
9:44chance to move long distances without
9:46wearing out his banged up feet
9:48unfortunately things don't always work
9:50out so easily he makes his way
9:52Downstream half waiting half swimming
9:54and found this was not an easy passage
9:56he had to dodge the trees and branches
9:59debris and wired fences buried under the
10:01water and carried by the fast-moving
10:03current then suddenly around a bend a
10:06windmill appeared after four or five
10:08hours of struggling against the river
10:10Ricky decided to camp at the Windmill he
10:12swam to the edge of the winding River
10:14and crawled out of the water brimming
10:16with confidence the brakes were finally
10:18going my way someone was bound to find
10:21me he said
10:22after a few days in a torrential
10:24rainstorm later Ricky builds a shelter
10:26while the rain provided essential
10:28hydration food was scarce with only
10:30grass as his primary source of
10:32nourishment I'd consumed so much of the
10:34rain saturated crap but it did nothing
10:36to satisfy my growing hunger pains he
10:38said and it was cold at night originally
10:41food wasn't a priority as rescue and
10:43water but as the days dragged on the
10:46hunger became too much to bear
10:48it was clear no one was coming to
10:50Windmill to rescue him and he had to
10:52find his own way out he was able to use
10:54the boards from the windmill to make a
10:56raft he made an SOS sign out of the
10:58windmill blades and an arrow in the
11:00direction he planned to travel I had to
11:03take the risk with no sign of being
11:05rescued it was time to leave my Fortress
11:07and float away McGee said
11:10Ricky McGee had been floating for hours
11:12when a path floated into view he paddled
11:15over to the River Edge and felt a sense
11:17of relief that there were signs of life
11:19he decided that he had to take the
11:21chance and follow the path even if that
11:23meant leaving the sustainability of the
11:25river
11:26Ricky gets off the raft and takes the
11:28Gamble and starts his Trek to follow the
11:30path
11:31a couple of hours into the walk he began
11:33to contemplate going back in search of
11:35the river again when he came across the
11:37main path
11:38the countryside still resembled the
11:40sparsely vegetated Dust Bowl he'd been
11:42walking through since leaving the river
11:45but it looked more promising
11:47he walked for a few more miles before he
11:49stumbled on a fence that seemed like a
11:50real property fence with red gates and a
11:54big sign on it the sensation of setting
11:56eyes on a property sign that someone
11:58else had put there was one of pure
11:59amazement
12:01all that walking had paid off my
12:03heartache soothed instantly Maggie said
12:06he'd been stuck out there for a week
12:08already finally it felt like he was
12:10getting closer to being found
12:12there were a few calves and cows
12:14wandering the land but at that stage cow
12:17slaughtering remained a last resort as
12:19it looked like too much effort and still
12:21felt confident of being rescued
12:23he continued down the path
12:25blood was pouring from his feet again he
12:28was walking on an open sore and dared
12:30not to take a look at them he wrapped
12:32his feet in his shirt as extra padding
12:34pounding the dirt with temperatures
12:36climbing to a scorching 120 degrees
12:38there was no escaping from the Heat
12:40as night fell the chill of the darkness
12:43was freezing he woke up and continued
12:45his Trek down the road when thirst was
12:47gripping him Ricky got down on his knees
12:50and prayed for rain
12:51within 15 minutes it was pissing down I
12:54couldn't believe it
12:55I don't know what it feels like to win
12:57the lottery but I imagine it doesn't get
12:58much better than taking water on the
13:00back of your parched throat in those
13:01circumstances
13:03especially when you know it's the only
13:05thing in the whole world that will keep
13:06you alive for another day he said he'd
13:10been walking down the road for more than
13:11a day without a hint of another human
13:14being
13:15then he came across an intersection that
13:17had two signs pointing East and West
13:19that read bori to the left and while
13:21Among The Yards to the right
13:23Ricky was now in a dilemma he chooses
13:26while Among The Yards it was all
13:27downhill in the direction of Western
13:28Australia and figured that the word
13:30yards was a good sign that some signs of
13:33life would be around he walked a few
13:36miles and eventually arrived nothing but
13:38worn out cattle yards and no signs of
13:41life so he turned around back to the
13:43intersection now all of his energy was
13:45spent and needed to rest he found shade
13:48and sat down as the hunger kept gnawing
13:50at him so he went searching he spotted a
13:53dead tree hollow inside without
13:55hesitating he stuck his hand inside
13:58searching for any nourishment then he
14:00felt a pinch something latched onto his
14:02finger when pulled out his arm he saw a
14:04bush centipede had bitten him he
14:06panicked as the pain raced up his arm
14:08and started swelling he raced to the
14:11sign at the intersection and made a run
14:12to bori it couldn't be that far to this
14:15place bori I'd die on this road
14:16otherwise the dingoes will eat me I've
14:18got to find a doctor Ricky said he's
14:21screaming in pain running down the road
14:22this is the first time he truly believed
14:25he was going to die from something other
14:26than exposure the left side of his body
14:29throbbed as he ran down the path the
14:31pain became blinding as the sun set he
14:34didn't know what to do then he ran into
14:36a fence hidden by the darkness he
14:38thought he saw car lights he yelled
14:40trying to chase it believing this was
14:42his only hope he couldn't go on anymore
14:44he plopped down tears were running down
14:47his face as the Venom was coursing
14:49through his body now the left side of
14:51his neck and face had swelled he could
14:53feel the buildup of fluid choking him as
14:55he passes out it was the raindrops that
14:58awoken him the next day he realized his
15:00arm didn't sting and could feel his face
15:02he was alive but had gone completely off
15:05course and was more lost than ever now
15:07there was no sign of the bori
15:09intersection or a path with no
15:11substantial food in his stomach for the
15:13previous 10 days the hunger pains grew
15:15worse as the pain of the centipede bite
15:17subsided eating grass and Roots wasn't
15:19enough
15:20he was now tired of the cold of the
15:22desert and constructed a shelter made of
15:25mud grass and cow manure
15:27my cow mud barricade stood about 60
15:30centimeters tall by the time I'd
15:31finished constructing it and crawled
15:33inside for a much needed sleep the
15:36absurdity of smelling like a dirty cows
15:38are certainly wasn't lost on me but I
15:40couldn't see the funny side anymore
15:42life had become a bad joke frankly I was
15:45getting eaten by mozzies and drinking
15:47muddy shitty water to stay alive lying
15:50in rubbing it over my body what the
15:53hell was I doing out here Mr McGee said
15:55for days he survived in his Hut killing
15:59a couple of small lizards and consuming
16:01grass the rest and the replenishment
16:03were much needed and he knew he had to
16:05keep moving
16:06after a rare good night's rest Ricky
16:09McGee moved on thirst gripping him once
16:12again
16:13he remembered once on a program on TV
16:15that a certain type of Black Rock meant
16:17there was water below the surface he
16:19could see those same types of rocks and
16:21figured it was worth a shot to check out
16:23the bush survival theory for himself
16:26he got up from his resting spot and
16:28walked a few hundred yards down to the
16:30bottom of a hill he started digging
16:32furiously and then found muddy water the
16:35deeper he dug the clearer the water was
16:38I buried my face into the pool that was
16:41filling up and tried to filter out the
16:42mud with my teeth as best I could I
16:45couldn't help laughing at my new Bush
16:46survival skills Ricky said with enough
16:49fluids to continue on he wanted to find
16:51the source he walked another half mile
16:54down when Came Upon a big green Mound
16:57nestled in the distance
16:59as he made his way closer he saw that
17:01Not only was it a dam but one so full it
17:05was overflowing
17:06days of drinking stagnant water combined
17:09with his chopped up feet from all the
17:11walking was all the convincing he needed
17:13to settle at the dam for a few days to
17:15recuperate
17:16this plan was especially confirmed when
17:19he realized the dam was surrounded by
17:20all types of vegetation he could see
17:23frog holes and yabby tracks
17:25the water in the dam felt as fresh as if
17:28God had personally filled it himself and
17:30I splashed around swimming from bank to
17:32bank looking for a fill of vegetation
17:34the healthy amount of food lining the
17:37edge of the dam meant I could just slide
17:39up while flapping in the water and take
17:40a sample he said
17:42in his enthusiasm he managed to dig a
17:44hole for shelter that was comfortable
17:46enough for the first night
17:48but the constant attack from mozzie's
17:50giant Australian mosquitoes was constant
17:53throughout the ordeal and didn't let up
17:55at the watering hole so he had to build
17:57a shelter if he was going to make this
17:59Watering Hole his home
18:01over the course of the next two weeks Mr
18:03Maggie ate nearly everything he could
18:05find lizards frogs leeches snakes
18:08Grasshoppers and caterpillars anything
18:10that slithered crawled scurried or crept
18:12across the desert floor was fair game in
18:15fact he developed an affinity for
18:17certain kinds of frogs over others
18:19leeches he said are okay but you must
18:22eat them quickly otherwise they attach
18:24to the inside of your mouth
18:25but it hadn't rained much and the dam
18:27was drying out quickly
18:29he kept hearing planes in the distance
18:31and it had become too much
18:33combined with the strength he built up
18:35from having a constant food source water
18:37and rest it gave him the will to set out
18:40on one final bid for freedom
18:43it was hard to leave the comfort of the
18:45dam but Ricky was confident that he'd
18:47find another Watering Hole the sun was
18:50burning his face and lips even the tops
18:52of his hands were getting torched but as
18:54it was looking Bleak he spots a big
18:56green mound in the distance Maggie
18:58hurries towards the mound at last he
19:00made it to the mound
19:02Ricky located a big Watering Hole which
19:04had two overflow dams lapping on either
19:06side crawling to the edge of the first
19:08overflow he grabbed handfuls of bottles
19:11and shoved them down his mouth
19:13after regaining some strength with food
19:15and water he went on to work on another
19:17shelter but this one would be different
19:20there was Timber next to the dam sourced
19:23from the tall trees just a stone's throw
19:25away
19:26Rick would work on this structure for
19:28days Ricky McGee was dealing with the
19:30disappointment of not being rescued he
19:33felt as if he was being ignored it has
19:35been weeks now and he was settling into
19:37a routine of building and reinforcing
19:39his shelter it gave him a job to do to
19:41distract him from the loneliness and
19:43dwelling on his current situation
19:45his mind wandered constantly the
19:48frustration of seeing planes fly over
19:49consumed him he became disillusioned
19:52about his prospects of being rescued and
19:54had run out of ideas to make someone
19:56notice him
19:57as the days went by his energy and food
19:59sources were depleting his bones were
20:02poking out of his skin and his eyes sank
20:04into his skull he'd lost so much weight
20:06his calf and thigh muscle had virtually
20:08disappeared then when it couldn't get
20:10any worse he felt an unbearable pain in
20:12his mouth from a rotten tooth blisters
20:15inside his gums stretched from the back
20:17of his lips to the back of his throat
20:18making it impossible to eat anything
20:20with starvation already hovering he knew
20:23he'd be dead soon if he couldn't eat the
20:25pain was so excruciating he hadn't eaten
20:27in the last few days he knew he had no
20:29other choice but to deal with the rotten
20:31tooth he grabbed some wire he used to
20:34screw her frogs with stuck the wire
20:36inside his mouth and shredded the skin
20:38inside his mouth he popped the blisters
20:40and his mouth filled with black blood
20:42and puss he nearly threw up
20:45now that the blisters were gone he could
20:47open his rotten tooth he put a finger
20:49inside he felt a tooth wiggling it was
20:52now time to deal with it with tears in
20:54his eyes with the same piece of wire he
20:56hooked it under the loose part of the
20:58tooth and he used all his remaining
21:00strength to pull on the wire a ripping
21:02sound echoed through his enclosure as
21:04the tooth detached my rotten tooth was
21:07undoubtedly my worst experience it was
21:09horrifying what I had to do to extract
21:11that thing still sickens me when I think
21:13about it Ricky says but he was still in
21:15pain and eating was painful
21:17he was able to consume small bottles but
21:20nothing of significance as it was too
21:21painful to move his jaw
21:23he was confined for five days in his
21:25shelter dealing with the tooth when he
21:27tried to walk he fell over he took a
21:30swim the dam and was able to get his
21:32bearing about himself
21:34it had been 71 days in the desert living
21:37in a makeshift shelter on the side of an
21:40oasis in the middle of nowhere
21:42by late afternoon he was preparing for
21:44his daily food collection when he heard
21:46something resembling a motor
21:48rushing outside his shelter he was met
21:50by the site of a four-wheel drive with
21:53two young guys up front two jackaroos or
21:56Australian Ranch hands who had been sent
21:58out from the nearest cattle station to
22:00perform their day's labor
22:02their first order of business required
22:04them to head into some of the most
22:05desolate parts of the country that
22:07surrounded them
22:09in this part of the northern Outback
22:10that meant going into some of the most
22:13isolated pockets on the continent
22:15as they slowly worked their way across
22:17the expanse they saw something moving
22:19off in the distance it was something
22:21unfamiliar something odd and foreign to
22:24the regular scenery they drove closer to
22:26investigate as they drew closer their
22:29curiosity only grew as Ricky Maggie Rose
22:31and fell in the distance
22:33as they approached the two wide-eyed
22:35jackaroos looked at each other in
22:37disbelief the mysterious figure they had
22:39found appeared to be a walking stumbling
22:41living skeleton I couldn't believe it
22:44after all this time I wasn't exactly
22:46sure but I thought I'd been waiting for
22:47someone to come along for pretty close
22:49to three months I had hardly absorbed
22:52this incredible twist in my fate before
22:54new thoughts began rushing through my
22:55racing brain Ricky said
22:58the jackaroos only stopped at the dam as
23:00an afterthought because they were in
23:02that corner of the station and didn't
23:04want to come back all this way in the
23:05furthest corner of the furthest Paddock
23:07again for a while
23:09because of that decision they found Mr
23:11Maggie he made the 45-minute ride to the
23:14homestead the station nurse looked at
23:16him in horror she saw this human being
23:18just Skin and Bones just days away from
23:20death
23:21while he wanted some meat the nurse
23:23explained that he had to be weaned back
23:25on solid food so he had a bowl of fruit
23:27and pumpkin soup
23:28after a good meal in his stomach Ricky
23:31called his sister who started crying at
23:33the sound of his voice
23:34she didn't have the heart to tell their
23:36mother Ricky was missing
23:38a day later Ricky was on a plane to
23:40Darwin Hospital during his rehab Ricky
23:43described his insatiable hunger during
23:46his Hospital stay later the police
23:49interviewed Ricky about the events
23:51leading up to being left for dead in the
23:52Australian Outback
23:54the cops doubted his story even though
23:56they found his car around where he was
23:58described
23:59at this point Ricky didn't care if the
24:01men that robbed him were brought to
24:03Justice
24:04the fact that I made it out alive that
24:06was my payback to those guys he said
24:09to this day many people doubt Ricky
24:11McGee's story about how he ended up in
24:13the situation to be stranded in the
24:15Australian desert he was fortunate to be
24:17stranded during a good wet season as
24:20having water meant he wasn't going to
24:21die in days
24:23for someone with virtually no Bush
24:25experience I think Ricky did remarkably
24:27well his doctor said
24:28months after the ordeal Ricky McGee
24:31returned to the dam with a friend as
24:33closure to the ordeal many human beings
24:35wouldn't have survived
24:36Ricky McGee is a Living testament to the
24:39resilience of the human Spirit he
24:41survived Against All Odds
24:43I had plenty of opportunities to give up
24:45but each time I found a way to hang on
24:47just long enough for someone to find me
24:49what I lived through is probably more
24:51than most people will have to endure but
24:53anyone can apply those same instincts I
24:55relied on to problems confronting them
24:58as the old saying goes whatever doesn't
25:00kill you can only make you stronger
25:02always remember that life is worth
25:04living and be prepared to fight for it
25:06with every ounce of your soul you just
25:08never know what tomorrow might bring
25:14being stranded in the Australian Outback
25:16can be a dangerous situation but with
25:18the right knowledge and preparation you
25:19can increase your chances of survival
25:21like any Desert environment it's about
25:23managing water try to decrease your
25:26energy output during the day to conserve
25:28your hydration
25:29sweating means you'll need water so do
25:32your best to get out of the Sun and
25:34limit your movements so you don't
25:35require much water intake look for
25:38sources of water such as Creeks or pools
25:40and collect rainwater if possible
25:42underwater sources can be found by
25:44looking for wet spots in black rocks the
25:47Outback can be extremely hot during the
25:49day and very cold at night look for
25:52natural shelters such as caves or
25:54overhangs or create your own using
25:56materials like branches leaves and bark
25:58also use these elements to start a fire
26:02friction-based methods involve using
26:04friction to create heat that ignites
26:05Tinder
26:06one popular method is the hand drill
26:09which involves rotating a stick against
26:11a flat piece of wood using your hands
26:13another method is the bow drill which
26:16involves using a bow to rotate a stick
26:18against a flat piece of wood if you have
26:21some type of magnifying glass you can
26:23use the sun's Rays to start a fire by
26:25focusing them onto a piece of Tinder
26:28while water is the most important
26:30resource food is also necessary for
26:32survival
26:33look for edible plants and insects or
26:36try to catch small animals like lizards
26:38or snakes
26:39and as in all survival situations don't
26:42panic
26:43important survival tips so you can get
26:46through
26:47an outdoor disaster

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