Police officers were already searching the edge of the Wheatbelt for any sign of a missing prospector when they got the call about the lost German.

The miraculous survival of German backpacker Carolina Wilga in the West Australian outback was met with joy and relief across the country. But it has also triggered an uncomfortable question — do we care more about some missing persons than others?

The last time anyone saw Carolina Wilga, she was standing in the doorway of a general store in the tiny town of Beacon, in Western Australia's Wheatbelt region It was June 29, and the 26-year-old German backpacker was more than 300 kilometres from Perth,

German backpacker Carolina Wilga has issued a heartfelt statement following her rescue from outback Western Australia, as she reveals more details about how she became lost.

"Miracle is a word that gets bandied about a lot, but to survive 12 days and cross-country - she went cross country to come to my road," she said. Wilga spent 11 nights in the elements after leaving her bogged vehicle, a decision the German tourist told police she made in a "pure panic".

A German backpacker who miraculously survived 12 days in the remote andunforgivingWestern Australian bush has revealed she lost 12kg during the ordeal.

Carolina Wilga, 26, from Germany, has been missing for 11 days in a remote part of Australia around 200 miles from Perth and police have given an update about her van