British couple found after two days in NZ bush

WELLINGTON, New Zealand -- Two British tourists have been rescued from the New Zealand bush after a three-hour walk turned into two cold nights outdoors, Reuters reports.

Martin Stevenson, 23, and Samantha McBurnie, 24, were reported overdue from a day's walk on Sunday in an area of old mines and a beach on the picturesque Coromandel peninsula around 90 km (56 miles) southeast of Auckland.

The backpacking couple were in New Zealand for four days when they went missing, police Senior Sergeant Brian Oliver told Reuters.

He said the couple did not suffer any injuries during their two nights in the bush. Local media said night temperatures were near freezing.

They were found around 8:40 a.m. (2040 GMT) when a search helicopter spotted smoke from the bush, Oliver said.

"It was able to get close enough to identify a person waving something but couldn't get any closer. We sent a ground party in and that was them," he told Reuters.

Oliver said it was not unusual for tourists to go missing in the Coromandel bush, where tracks may not be as clearly marked as in Europe.