Jessica Johnston was lucky to have survived after plummeting from the top of a 180-foot waterfall while hiking in the mountains. But when she lost her footing—she also lost her dog.
They were enjoying one of the world’s richest landscapes, New Zealand’s South Island—with its rainforests, glaciers, fjords, and crystal-clear lakes. Every day was a new adventure camping with her border collie Molly.
Then, Johnston’s foot slipped and she fell down an 18-story waterfall. Somehow, Johnston survived. Rescuers arrived to help her, but Molly was nowhere to be found.
News of Molly’s plight spread quickly across New Zealand and a local helicopter company set up a crowdfunding campaign to support a search that would cost about $50 a minute.
Within eight hours, $11,500 had poured in—enough for Precision Helicopters to fund 3 trips. The company had previously rescued a cow on a cliff’s edge and a horse stuck in a swamp—and these guys hoped Molly would be next.
“HUGE thank you to so many people who have donated to get a search underway for Molly the dog,” Precision Helicopters posted to its Facebook page.
“Plan is to first search Tuesday in fine weather conditions with some sophisticated thermal imagery tech coming over from (the city of Christchurch) and a good team of volunteers.”
A little before 4 p.m. on March 30, Precision Helicopters Ltd. posted a video to its Facebook page that the search for Molly was underway. A blue helicopter flew up and over a mountain headed toward the waterfall where Johnston last saw her dog.
In just over an hour, there was another video worth sharing. A thermal imaging camera showed something wedged in between a pile of rocks. As the helicopter approached, the object became more apparent. It was a bedraggled black and white dog, soaking wet and shivering. Molly.
A crewman, Wayne, climbed down from the chopper as it hovered near the rocks. He brought his search-and-rescue dog, a Jack Russell terrier named Bingo, to help keep Molly calm.
He offered the shivering dog a piece of sausage and then corralled her in one arm as he held Bingo in the other. Before long, they were all safely back inside the helicopter.
“MOLLY HAS BEEN FOUND!!” Precision Helicopters reported on Facebook.
The dog had survived a week in the wild, possibly eating some small animals to stay alive. All that was left was to reunite her with Johnston.
When they met again, Molly ran up to Jessica, who had a huge cast on her right arm, jumping up to lick her face. (Watch video of the rescue and heartwarming reunion below…)
The past week had pushed them both to the brink—and even beyond it, but with help from strangers and friends, they were back together again.
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“She’s been through a bloody rough week,” Johnston wrote on Facebook. “But with both of us back home, I can add this adventure to the list.”
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