Cadets lost in Wahiawa forest ate ants to fight off hunger

Two Army ROTC cadets lost overnight in a jungle warfare course in Wahiawa over the weekend ate strawberry guavas and ants to get by, said a Mililani man who helped them.

Scott Fisher, 29, said he was hiking a trail unofficially known as Wahiawa Hills on Sunday morning when he found the two, who were from Florida. The pair had gotten lost Saturday while participating in a land navigation course on Schofield Barracks’ East Range, the Army said.

When they failed to return by noon Sunday, the Army launched a search that included 200 soldiers.

Fisher said he shared some of his water with the cadets, then led them back to the military grounds but declined to trespass onto military property himself. The Army acknowledged that the cadets said a hiker had helped them find their way back.