A Western Australian family whose van got bogged down in the desert have been told they may have to spend weeks there before they can be safely rescued.
A family-of-four could remain stranded in the desert until Monday after their campervan became bogged in torrential rain.
The travellers set off their emergency beacon about 10am on Friday after becoming stuck in their modified Mitsubishi Canter about 150 kilometres northwest of Oodnadatta in South Australia’s Simpson Desert.
Orios and Lindsey Zavros and their kids Zoe and Zane had their signal for help answered by South Australia Police. However a land rescue has been hindered due to ongoing bad weather and flooding of surrounding roads.
The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) made contact with the family about 2.30pm on Friday and confirmed no one had been injured, a spokesman told ABC News.
A rescue plane was deployed to deliver the family a satellite phone and water, with police confirming they had enough essential supplies to see them through the weekend.
“The vehicle from Western Australia containing two adults and two children became stranded after bad weather and flooding on the roads,” police said.
“They are safe and well and in contact with the police.”
The AMSA added roads in the area were likely to be “flooded and inaccessible for several days”.
The Perth family have been on the road since November last year, having travelled through Queensland, Western Australia, South Australia and the Northern Territory.
Mr and Mrs Zavros have been told they could be stranded for up to two weeks, The West reported.
In their most recent post to Instagram, the family shared a photo of their vehicle in Birdsville, Queensland, with the caption “After three days of driving, we made it! Bring on the Simpson Desert”.
In a previous post they revealed they had decided to begin their long drive back to Perth for Christmas.
The family were caught out in one of two weather systems currently sweeping across five states.
A major cold front hit South Australia on Wednesday, lashing it with winds up to 70km/h and causing blackouts across the state, including in Adelaide.
