Fears are growing for a missing British woman who was last seen going out for a hike in New Zealand.
Stephanie Simpson, 32, told her friends that she was going “tramping” on the South Island but failed to turn up to work on Monday.
None of Ms Simpson’s friends have been able to get in contact with her and authorities have sent out search teams including helicopters, the New Zealand Herald reports.
It comes after two bodies were recovered from a nearby river on Friday and Saturday after heavy flooding in the area.
Ms Simpson had said she was planning to go walking at the Mt Aspiring National Park, to the northwest of Queenstown.
A friend told the Herald: “She's strong, she's fit, she's capable. She's worked in the outdoors, she knows what she's up to."
Ms Simpson worked as a landscaper and had reportedly moved to Wanaka in 2019 after travelling in Australia.
The friend added: "She's a really beautiful, kind-hearted person. She can make friends in an instant, she's awesome. She's just here to tramp and see the country.
"It wouldn't surprise me if she did just rock up tonight and there's been a little something that's happened and she just needed to take an extra day.”
A state of emergency had been declared for the area last year after rains caused flooding across swathes of low-lying land.
Two bodies - a man and a woman - were pulled from the Makarora River and are believed to be two walkers who were going into Mt Aspiring National Park.
The Standard has approached the Foreign and Commonwealth Office for comment.
