Police find body in search for Muhammad Ferdiansah, 26, in Stirling Range National Park

UPDATE: A body has been found in the search for 26-year-old Muhammad Ferdiansah in the Stirling Range National Park.

In a statement on Monday morning, police said they had found a body believed to be that of the missing man.

Mr Ferdiansah’s relatives have been advised of the discovery.

A recovery operation was under way on Monday morning to retrieve the body near Mt Toolbrunup.

On Sunday, a land and air search was launched for Mr Ferdiansah whose vehicle was found abandoned in the national park.

Great Southern police had “urgent welfare concerns” for Mr Ferdiansah after his vehicle was found in the Mt Toolbrunup car park on Saturday.

SES volunteers from Albany, Mt Barker and Gnowangerup were involved in the search, along with a police helicopter, police drones and staff from the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.

Mt Toolbrunup (1052m) is the second-highest peak in the Stirling Range, behind Bluff Knoll.

Trails WA classes the 4km return hike to the summit as a grade 5 walk — a higher degree of difficulty than Bluff Knoll.

“Toolbrunup Peak towers above the other western peaks and offers uninterrupted views in all directions but can only be reached if you are fit and agile and prepared to scramble up some steep rock sections,” the Trails WA website says.

“The trail leaves the carpark and leads through woodland, mostly following the bank of a creek and becoming progressively steeper.

“Beyond the woodland it rises steeply over large boulders, loose rocks and steep scree to a saddle near the top of the south-west buttress.

“From here it’s a short, steep scramble to the top.”

Sunday’s search comes after two hiker rescues at Bluff Knoll in the first weekend of 2022.

It has been a busy start to the year for local SES volunteers, who have also attended a cliff fall in West Cape Howe National Park, a bushfire in Albany and a search near Denmark.