A helicopter saw an SOS written in rocks Tuesday in Israel’s southern Negev desert, rescuing a couple who had gotten lost during a hike two days earlier.
Leila and Daniel, who did not give their last name, told Hadashot news that they somehow veered off the trail while hiking in Nahal Nekarot near the Ramon crater, and realized they were lost.
The couple in their 30s decided to make the SOS so that rescuers could find them.
Their families had not heard from them since Sunday, and early on Tuesday morning called the rescue services to help look for the couple.
Police helicopter unit searched for missing couple in desert in the south,pilot spotted SOS stones & missing man. They were flown to safety. pic.twitter.com/ZYgUI6ZirJ
— Micky Rosenfeld (@MickyRosenfeld) May 22, 2018
The two told Hadashot that they had very little water left and were worried about dehydrating, so they took shelter from the sun by digging holes on either side of a shallow cave and moving from one side to the other as the sun moved from east to west.
Daniel told the news channel he trapped some lizards to eat because they had nearly run out of food, but only he ate them as Leila refused.
They were rescued by helicopter and taken to Beersheba’s Soroka Medical Center, and after tests and treatment they were released.