YouTube survival challenge contestant rescued after spending nearly 18 hours in the woods: Police

(MICHIGAN) — A 36-year-old woman who was participating in a YouTube survival challenge was rescued after spending nearly 18 hours in the woods, according to Michigan State Police.

State Police Troopers on Saturday responded to the Pigeon River State Forest to assist the Otsego County Sheriff’s Office in locating a “woman missing from California,” officials said in a statement.

The woman, who was “participating in a YouTube outdoor survival contest,” left the “designated base camp to search for water” at approximately 5 p.m. on Friday, and when she did not return, the contest hosts “initiated their own search efforts,” the sheriff’s office said in a press release.

After “unsuccessful attempts to locate her,” someone called 911 at around 5 a.m. on Saturday, which prompted a “coordinated search effort” looking through the “dense forest,” officials said.

At approximately 10:40 a.m. on Saturday, officials located the missing woman and “directed the canine units to her,” police said. She was located within a “swampy area” and had been missing in the “cold and rain for almost 18 hours,” according to the sheriff’s office.

Authorities were able to “walk her out of the woods safely,” according to police said. She was released with no serious injuries, the sheriff’s office noted.

Officials did not identify the woman in their public statements, but applauded the rescue effort.

“Great work by all first responders on the scene,” police said.

In a statement sent to ABC News, YouTube said it had “no involvement or awareness of this event, and YouTube does not provide or contribute to this type of content.”