Two young New Zealand hikers have been stranded in a remote part of the Solomon Islands for four days after extreme weather cut off their route from the country's highest mountain.
Keanu Isaksson, 25, and Luca Zylstra-Law, 19, both from Matakana, north of Auckland, became trapped during an expedition on Mt Popamanaseu — the highest peak of the Solomon Islands, which stood at 2335m.
Their families said the two friends had become stranded in a remote ravine after torrential rain, flooding and landslides made their planned exit impossible.
They were understood to be sheltering in an area known for rockfalls, with more severe weather forecast over the coming week.
A local rescue party had set out to retrieve the pair but was forced to turn back due to dangerous conditions, and the only helicopter available in the Solomon Islands had been unable to reach the hikers.
According to the families, both men were experienced hikers and had been in the Solomon Islands for about two weeks prior to becoming trapped.
The families were now appealing for urgent assistance to help coordinate a rescue, saying worsening weather and the difficult terrain have left the pair stranded in "life-threatening conditions".
A Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) spokesperson confirmed to 1News it was aware of the situation.
"We are providing consular assistance to the families of two New Zealanders in the Solomon Islands," the spokesperson said.
"For privacy reasons, no further information can be provided."
'Very stressful'
Zylstra-Law's mother Tanja Zylstra told 1News the two lifelong friends had travelled to the Solomon Islands together on what was meant to be a botanical adventure, exploring the country's unique plant life and natural environment.
She said both families first realised the seriousness of the situation after receiving a short satellite message from the pair on Friday.
"Urgent, urgent, helicopter evacuation needed, water rising, can't go forward, can't go backwards," the message reportedly read.
Since then, she said communication had been limited to brief satellite messages to preserve battery.
"We've been in touch with everybody we can think of," Zylstra said.
She said they had been told the Solomon Islands had no specialist search and rescue capability, while the helicopter could not reach the pair because of low cloud and steep terrain.
Isaksson's mother Deni Holl said Solomon Islands police told her the weather was "the worst they've seen in decades".
"The villagers are reporting that they can hear the rocks falling," she said. "So we're just hoping that the boys are well.
"These boys are not foolhardy boys that have gone into this unprepared and unplanned. This is a freak weather pattern from that has created a dire situation."
Holl said the family believed the pair had enough food to ration for several more days, but their biggest concern remained the unstable terrain and ongoing rockfalls around them.
"It's been very stressful. We just want to hear that there's help on the way."
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