An Alone Australia contestant suffered a medical emergency in the wilds of New Zealand during the launch of season two of the brutal reality series.
In the grueling show, 10 survivors are dropped into the wilderness on New Zealand’s South Island, where they must survive the competition for a chance to win $250,000.
The program is billed as the most brutal and authentic reality series in history, as the participants are left alone in the wild and forced to film themselves.
And the second series got off to a very tense start on Wednesday when one contestant suffered a shocking medical emergency.
60-year-old resilience coach Mike from NSW, the eldest of the cast, suffered chest pains while trying to build a fire for the night.
Alone Australia contestant Mike (pictured) suffered a medical emergency in the New Zealand wilderness during the season two launch show of the brutal reality series
The second series of the show got off to a very tense start on Wednesday when 60-year-old resilience coach Mike from NSW suffered a medical emergency when he wheezed while setting a fire.
The former Waratahs player and rugby union coach began wheezing and wheezing as he tried to light kindling for his campfire.
He noted how quickly the ambient temperature of the South Island lake forest dropped as he came to terms with living in the wild climate.
Mike then began spluttering and coughing before, in an unsettling moment, struggling to keep himself upright between two trees.
Later that night, Mike was in so much pain that he used the emergency satellite phone to call the show’s medical team, who rushed across the lake to his aid.
The first episode, which aired on SBS, ended on a cliffhanger, with the medical team rushing to reach Mike as it remains to be seen whether he will continue in the competition.
Elsewhere in the episode, the other survivors tried to get their bearings in the new environment while scattered across the New Zealand wilderness.
Mike began to sputter before struggling to keep himself upright between two trees. Later that evening, he used the emergency satellite phone to call the show’s medical team
In the grueling show, 10 survivors are dropped into the wilderness on New Zealand’s South Island, where they must survive the competition for a chance to win $250,000.
Leanne, 41, a Barkandji woman from Mildura, found the humidity of the landscape very different to the dry, red earth of her own country as she adapted to the climate.
Vegetarian Tamika, 51, also speculated on how long she would last in the wild while staying true to her ‘plant-based’ ethos.
She admitted that it might be necessary to eat meat, but said she would rather not kill an animal that is raising its young, and chose to start eating fish.
The other survivors experiencing their first night in the wild also included personal trainer Andreas, 42, and Defense Force engineer Chace, 27.
They were joined by game hunter Jack, 55, youth worker Jason, 36, aquaculturalist Krzyasztof, 39, and former SAS soldier Rick, 59, who decided to take a dip in the icy lake waters after his first night alone.
Elsewhere in the episode, the other survivors tried to get their bearings in the new environment while scattered across the New Zealand wilderness.
Vegetarian Tamika (pictured), 51, speculated on how long she would last in the wild, staying true to her ‘plant-based’ ethics, as she grappled with the thought of killing animals
In the grueling show, 10 survivors are dropped into the wilderness on New Zealand’s South Island, where they must survive the competition for a chance to win $250,000.
The first season of Alone Australia made headlines last year after becoming the SBS network’s most-watched original series ever.
Based on an American format, the Australian version, the first season of which was filmed in Tasmania, scored over a million viewers for half of its eleven episodes.
In the season one finale, Gina Chick was crowned the series winner after braving the elements to survive a whopping 67 days in the grueling wilderness.
Alone Australia is currently available to stream exclusively on SBS on Demand.