Another one !

Tracey Fraser, 36, was reported missing after she and two companions - Richard Neil, 45, and Nicolas Apse, 19 - failed to arrive as expected at a gold mine near Meekatharra, 765km north of Perth last Thursday.
The two men were rescued on Sunday night.

Police searching for Ms Fraser yesterday confirmed they had found a woman's body just north of Meekathara.

Although the body has not been formally identified, the missing woman's next of kin have been told it is probably her.

The identification process is not expected to take place for a few days, once the body has been flown to Perth, a police spokesman said late last night.

The trio left Perth on Tuesday for the Fortnum Gold Mine, 150km north of Meekatharra, where Mr Neil was working as a sub-contractor.
After missing the turn off, they drove too far and became bogged on Wednesday.

Mr Neil and Mr Apse then left Ms Fraser near the car while they went for help.

When they finally made it back to the vehicle three nights later, the Perth mother, who is understood to have medical conditions, had disappeared.

The two men were released from hospital yesterday after being treated for sunburn, exposure and shock.

1) newspaper says (so it must be true) that they were last seen going thru meeka at 2:30 am. that means they were probably looking for their turn-off in the pitch dark.not a good start.
2) did not tell anyone their plans or expected arrival times. (when i go to or leave a mine i usually ring ahead or confirm my arrival at the last phone/town)
3) cannot tell from picture but, tell me what is hard about putting a 20L water can in the car.
4) womans body found 4 Kms from ute, 100m from dirt road, under a tree.
rule 4 - don't leave the car unless absolutely neccessary (or you know the area well)
i'm sorry for any relatives but you dont have to be a survival expert to follow these rules. one of the guys is supposed to have worked at the mine in question, he should have had an inkling of what the bush can be like , (unforgiving some times).
(gets down off soapbox)

Didn’t think there has been that much rain up meaka way lately.

Wonder how far past the mine they went, as the mine is only 70k’s up the Ashburton downs Meekatharra Road from the grate northern hwy.

I am on record as getting upset over needless loss that could have been avoided with some planning and a bit of preparation. Sat phones, epirbs and radios are only any good if you can afford them. Appears to have been a hasty trip. There's probably more stories behind the scene but ........

Used to work up that way, know it quite well.

Driving at night is completely different. Signs are hard to see because everything is coated and stained with red dust. Even if you are familiar with the area, having no visual references to tell you where you are makes it very hard to navigate. Having driven from Perth numerous times after a days work let me give you the tip - you're pretty knackered by that stage. Add a few coldies into the equation and it is quite easy to get lost.

One other thing people fail to realise is the map does not indicate just how many roads there are around the area. It is a very mineral rich part of the world and there are hundreds of unsignposted tracks going everywhere.

A truly horrific way to go.