WATCH: Autistic Teen Rescued After Six Days and Nights Lost in the Australian Wilderness

An autistic 17-year-old boy was rescued alive and of good cheer after spending what were no doubt a challenging six days and nights lost in the rugged woodlands of eastern Australia. The teen, whose mother said he has what’s called “Level 2 Autism,” was detected by a search crew on a police helicopter Thursday. He was found peacefully lying asleep on a flat rock and then grinning wildly besides a creek near Walhalla, a former gold-mining community about 115 miles east of Melbourne, news outlets are reporting. Footage of his recovery has gone viral. This is the second case reported by Breitbart News this month of a young person surviving undaunted in the wild and found by search crews largely unharmed and in upbeat spirits. Earlier this month, a six-year-old autistic boy was found by trail riders in the Kentucky wilderness with his small dog after he wandered from his home three days earlier. Naked and obscured in the bushes, he cheerfully called out the “Old McDonald” song refrain “E-I-E-I-O horsey” as the riders passed. Apparently with certain types of autism those who have it don’t panic because they don’t contemplate the potentially life-threatening situation in which they find themselves. Autistic kids who wander, called “elopement,” show what’s called goal-directed wandering, autism experts say about the well documented phenomenon. Instead of bolting in terror from something overwhelming, they’re quietly moving toward something that pulls them — water, trains, a spinning ceiling fan, a favorite spot. Clinicians describe that state as calm, focused, almost stealthy, researchers say. The Australian teen identified only as William had been dropped off last Friday by his mother, Elizabeth, for a camping excursion with a teenage friend for the weekend. According to police, he walked a short distance from their campsite back toward the drop-off area and disappeared. “More than 100 emergency workers and volunteers spent days searching the dense alpine region for the missing teen,” the Mirror reported. Acting Police Inspector Jason Benbow said he believed William spent his days hiking up and down very steep terrain but then became trapped by the surrounding landscape near the creek. Although the rescue chopper discovered the teen only 1.2 miles from his campsite, the steep terrain prevented him from hiking back, and he spent his final two days beside the water, police said. The chopper’s video shows William wearing shorts and boots, shirtless and sunburned, using towels as blankets to stay warm. “He woke up to the sound of the helicopter, gave them a thumbs up and they winched him to safety,” Benbow told reporters. According to the Mirror, William’s family noted that he has Level 2 autism, a condition that requires substantial support and often means a person relies heavily on predictable routines. Mild Southern Hemisphere spring weather and low rainfall throughout the week helped him survive the ordeal. Police said William was in good spirits and mostly good health when he was reunited with his mother before being taken to a hospital for medical monitoring. His mother was overjoyed. “I’m just over the moon that he’s alive,” Elizabeth told reporters, with authorities withholding the family’s last name to protect William’s privacy. But she also made a vow. “And he’s never leaving the house again,” she said cheerfully. “He’s grounded for life. He’s not going anywhere ever again.” Breitbart contributor Lowell Cauffiel is the author of the New York Times true crime best seller House of Secrets and nine other crime novels and nonfiction titles. See lowellcauffiel.com for more.