If I go without food and water for about six hours I become almost unbearable, so spare a thought for 38-year-old Louis Strydom.

That’s not Louis above, because that’s James Franco in the movie 127 Hours, but the ‘trapped by a rock’ connection is pretty clear.

Louis was found near the farm Omdraai in Bethlehem yesterday, after a five day search, and rescuers say it is a miracle that he managed to survive that long without nourishment.

AfriForum’s Bethlehem branch operated in conjunction with the South African Support Initiative (S.A.S.I), a non-profit organisation that focuses on locating missing persons, with this from IOL:

Isoldé Laesecke, chair of AfriForum’s Bethlehem branch, and Ruan Steinhobel of the South African Support Initiative…received a lead on Tuesday afternoon. They combed the area where Strydom was last seen and first located his vehicle, before following his footprints. They eventually found Strydom trapped under a rock.

Laesecke said they initially thought Strydom was already dead, but upon closer inspection they could however see that he was alive and immediately called in emergency services.

Laesecke said it took rescue workers about three hours to stabilise and get Strydom out from under the rock. He was taken to Hoogland Mediclinic by Emer-G-Med, where he is currently recuperating. He was severely dehydrated, but sustained no further serious injuries.

“We understand that the man was trapped under the rock for up to five days, with no food or water. It is a miracle that he is still alive,” said Laesecke.

No, we don’t know how or why he became trapped, but I bet it’s quite a story.

Let’s do the math – five days is 120 hours, and they made a movie about that 127 Hours, so surely Louis deserves a movie too?

[source:iol]