Frantic YouTube survival show contestant rescued from Michigan forest after going missing for 18 hours

Michigan State Police found the woman 18 hours after she went missing

A contestant in a YouTube survival show has been rescued 18 hours after she got lost in a forest.

The 36-year-old from California, who has not been identified, went missing in the Pigeon River Forest in northern Michigan this weekend, UpNorthLive reported.

The woman left the base camp around 5 p.m. Friday in search of water but never returned, prompting the contest’s hosts to launch a search.

Michigan State Police were called to the forest around 5 a.m. Saturday and began a coordinated search with canine units. A helicopter was also sent up to search the densely wooded area, police said.

At around 10:40 a.m., the police helicopter located the woman deep in a swampy area of forest. Footage, shared by police, shows the woman standing in a thick area of trees, waving frantically to the helicopter overhead.

A woman competing in a YouTube survival show contest was missing for 18 hours before Michigan State Police located her, waving in a forest (Michigan State Police Seventh District)

Despite the cold and rainy conditions in the area this weekend, the woman was able to walk out of the forest on her own after officers on the ground located her.

The woman’s identity has not been shared by authorities. It was not immediately known who was hosting the YouTube survival contest.

An ice storm earlier this year in Pigeon River Forest left many fallen tree trunks and branches in the already-dense woods, which hindered search efforts.

Emergency medical services evaluated the woman at the scene and she was released with no serious injuries, the Otsego County Sheriff’s Office reported.