Egil’s wife disappeared on a forest trip – then came the shock message

On Sunday 29 May 2022, Jorunn (61) – from Birkenes in Agder – goes on a trip. She likes to walk in forests, fields and mountains, and often does so alone.

Jorunn tells her husband, Egil, that she wants to go up to Dyblemyrheia, a lookout in Birkenes that is 192 meters above sea level.

She cycles off at three o’clock in the day, and the plan is to be home again at six or seven o’clock.

Then there is silence from her.

Her husband Egil becomes worried when he calls Jorunn at seven o’clock, without getting an answer. Egil then calls Jorunn’s mother to see if she has heard anything from her daughter. She doesn’t have that.

The mother-in-law and Egil become worried, and call the police.

Starts a large-scale search operation

The police immediately launch a large search operation, and get help from the Red Cross, search dogs and volunteers to find Jorunn.

Egil tells the police that Jorunn cycled towards Grimenes to go up to Dyblemyrheia. It is therefore natural to start the search in this area.

The police first find a bicycle. It is parked at a point where the road becomes a path. Egil confirms to the police that it is Jorunn’s bike they have found.

The area where the bike was found is hilly with dense and lush forest. When day turns to evening, it is difficult to search in the large forest area, which stretches over many square kilometers.

Call for rescue helicopter

After looking for Jorunn for hours, the rescue helicopter of 330 Squadron on Sola is called to assist in the search. It is 167 kilometers from Sola to Birkenes, and it takes 45 minutes to fly there.

330 Squadron uses a new SAR Queen helicopter, which has a very special instrument that can search for mobile phones. The forest covers many square kilometres, and it is like finding a needle in a haystack if you search in the traditional way.

With mobile tracking, however, they can be hit up to a radius of 200 metres.

When Jorunn set out on the trip at three o’clock, it was 15 degrees. One hour before midnight, the temperature has dropped to ten degrees. The husband Egil hears the helicopter flying over the forest, and becomes more and more worried.

– I was afraid. And I just got worse and worse, because I knew something had happened.

It takes time before the helicopter is able to pick up mobile signals from Jorunn’s mobile. They know that the mobile phone is on, since they do not get straight to mobile answer when they call it.

Finds the phone – but not Jorunn

Suddenly, the mobile instrument in the SAR Queen helicopter picks up a signal from her phone – in a wooded area, some distance from where they think Jorunn is. On the ground in this area, no one is looking.

The helicopter can’t land, so they alert the ground crew. The dog patrol then heads towards the hit area. The 330 Squadron helicopter lands in a nearby field, as the loud engine noise disturbs and stresses the dogs.

The ground crew lets the dogs lead, as they do not want to destroy potential fresh tracks from Jorunn.

After the helicopter lands and it’s quiet, they call Jorunn’s phone, hoping the ground crew can hear it.

They hear nothing at first, but continue to call. Then there is an aid worker who hears something. They keep calling the phone and eventually find it in the woods. Near the mobile phone is also her bag with a wallet and knitting clothes.

But where is Jorunn?

Jorunn is found

There is an intense search for Jorunn – who has now been missing for nine hours – in the dense forest with steep terrain, in the middle of the night.

And then it happens: A dog finds Jorunn lying in a stream. She is alive, but is injured and in excruciating pain. She has broken her back and several ribs, and punctured a lung.

Egil is overjoyed that his wife has been found.

– They called and said they had found her. Alive. It’s both Christmas and New Year and a birthday at the same time, says Egil, and continues:

– The doctor calls me and says she has broken her back, punctured her lung and broken ribs. Then I think the worst. “Is she lame?”. “No,” said the doctor, “she can move her toes. And she’s awake.” Then I understood nothing. Is it possible? But it works! She had guardian angels. Jorunn is tenacious – she does not give up easily.

Jorunn is carefully lifted onto a stretcher and taken to Kristiansand hospital by helicopter.

Erling Grønning is a pilot for 330 Squadron, and was involved in the rescue operation. He gives much of the credit for the happy ending to the technology in the rescue helicopter.

– If we hadn’t been there, and if we hadn’t had the mobile tracking, we would never have found her. This was such a large area that if we couldn’t get an electronic signal to target, we wouldn’t find her in time to save her life.

Had fallen in the forest

What had happened to Jorunn was that she had parked her bike and walked along the forest path. Eventually she went off the path and into the forest. She was unlucky and fell down a steep slope, landing in a stream.

– I hit myself hard when I was going down the slope. But I couldn’t do much, because I didn’t have a phone or anything. Before I fell I had lost my phone. So I wasn’t given notice or anything, she says.

Jorunn’s thoughts wandered to family and friends as she lay helpless in severe pain.

– I thought about them at home – I did it.

She felt a huge sense of relief when one of the dogs found her.

– Suddenly a little bird came jumping at me. Then I jumped – it jumped sky high. Then I realized that some people were coming. Then I was happy, says Jorunn.

Egil is proud of his wife, whom he married 13 years ago. And the scary experience hasn’t deterred her from going for a walk afterwards.

– She has had a terrible back pain, but she has to go out and walk. I don’t understand how she manages it. There is a bone in her nose. She doesn’t give up. It was so good to have her back again, says a relieved Egil.

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