Five Australian tourists found in Bolivia

A local native is seen outside a hotel in the Salar de Uyuni, Bolivia, on October 7, 2009. Five Australian tourists who got lost in the Salar de Uyuni salt flat have been found, but their local guide is still missing, according to Bolivian police

Five Australian tourists who got lost in the Salar de Uyuni salt flat have been found, but their local guide is still missing, Bolivian police said. "We have found the van with the five tourists unharmed, but the driver is missing" after going to look for help, Potosi department tourism chief Francisco Quisberth told reporters on Friday. The tourists, between 21 and 31 years of age, went missing after leaving the nearby southern city of Tupiza on Thursday, Potosi police commander Colonel Denis Duchen said earlier. There are no roads in the Salar, the world's largest salt flat. It is located near the crest of the Andes, some 3,650 meters (11,975 feet) above sea level, and spread across a desolate expanse of 12,000 square kilometers (4,600 square miles). Visitors usually navigate their way around the treacherous landscape by relying on tracks left by previous vehicles, but these can be washed out by heavy rain.