Son of woman missing in bush for 17 days says she was barely recognisable when found

The son of a Queensland woman who is recovering in hospital after being lost in bushland for 17 days says he barely recognised her when she was found.

Shannon Leah Fraser was swimming with family members when she went missing near Innisfail, south of Cairns, sparking a search by police and SES volunteers who feared she had been murdered or taken by a crocodile.

She was found by a local banana farmer yesterday morning, disorientated and stumbling around the scrub.

“I didn’t even notice her when she pulled up,” son Jacob Fraser said.

“She lost a heap of weight.”

Ms Fraser is believed to have lost 16kg over the 17-day ordeal, telling family she survived on creek water, small fish and insects.

She is now in hospital being treated for severe sunburn and dehydration.