Backpacker search, freak tornado and surf reef feature in our best news pictures for July

As the sun set on the giant expanse of WA's Wheatbelt on July 11, there was a collective sigh of relief following the news of a young woman's incredible rescue.

Carolina Wilga's survival tale, another outback search from the 1990s, freak weather, and at-risk wildlife feature in our top photography pics for July, captured by the ABC's journalists and camera operators.

'Rescuer and angel'

After spending 11 nights in the rugged outback, backpacker Carolina Wilga's ordeal in the elements came to an end when farmer Tania Henley found her on the side of the road.

Speaking to ABC, Ms Henley recounted the moment she found the missing traveller, describing her as a resilient and lovely person.

In a statement, Ms Wilger thanked Tania for being "my rescuer and angel".

Backpacker safe

It was only moments before this photo was taken that Carolina Wilga was seen for the first time since she went missing.

Reporters and camera operators, including the ABC's Mya Kordic, waited anxiously at Beacon Airstrip after news broke she had been found by a member of the public.

Not long after that, Ms Wilga was driven to the airstrip and boarded this police plane bound for Perth.

Freak tornado

A mid-winter freak tornado in the Perth suburb of City Beach split trees and damaged houses.

Authorities received 105 requests for help, and said there was little time for warning after the waterspout formed off the coast, and wreaked havoc in the affluent suburb.

One resident said it sounded like a "jet engine".

Surf's up

The seascape at Albany's Middleton Beach was recently transformed when an artificial surf reef was installed, bringing joy to surfers old and young.

Locals hope the the multi-million dollar reef, constructed from 70,00 tones of granite rock, will be around for generations of surfers to embrace.

Birds at risk

Owls like these are dying after eating rodents poisoned with readily available rat baits.

Some 60 owls have been found dead or seriously injured in WA's South West, prompting welfare groups and councils to look at reducing common rat and mouse baits.

Wildlife woes

The emus might have won a war in the 1930s, but this wildlife centre in the state's north has been fighting a losing battle to rehabilitate native animals.

Derby Native Wildlife, which releases 100 animals a year, is grappling with the reality of closing down, faced with financial woes and without government funding. 

With the nearest centres hundreds of kilometres away, there are concerns for wildlife welfare in the future.

Nowhere man

Reporter Erin Parke captured the return of wilderness survivor Robert Bogucki to the Great Sandy Desert recently, for the ABC podcast series Expanse: Nowhere Man.

Mr Bogucki’s disappearance in the desert in 1999 triggered one of Australia's biggest land searches, and was a media sensation.

The traveller from Alaska was discovered alive after six weeks with barely any food and water.

Photographer Franque Batty contended with heat, wind, and camera-shy subjects to document the moment Mr Bogucki met Aboriginal tracker Merridoo Walbidi, who searched for him 26 years ago.

Horror crash

This is what the road looked like after a driver at a car meet up allegedly sped into a 17-year-old girl, who was left seriously injured in hospital.

The case prompted yet another call from authorities to be safe on the road during a month where the year-to-date road toll reached a 18-year high at 112 deaths by July 9.

Cook, Roger Cook

Evoking the visual language of the iconic James Bond intro, Premier Roger Cook and Manufacturing Minister Amber-Jade Sanderson toured a factory in Perth's east while spruiking local manufacturing for renewables.

They were inspecting a wind turbine coil, made by the Perth-based company which is Australia's only manufacture of large coil components.

Nedlands debacle

The City of Nedlands has been in the spotlight this month, after a spate of council resignations led to the state government removing the remaining councillors and appointing three commissioners instead.

It was a saga that included accusations of "dysfunction" at the Nedlands council and a denial from sacked Mayor Fiona Argyle that she was being removed. 

The new commissioners, announced in late July, admitted they had a "huge task ahead of us". 

Stolen generations

Sisters Meredith Edwards and Angela Ryder spoke to the ABC this month about their plight with WA's forced child removal policies.

"There was physical, emotional and sexual abuse," Ms Ryder said.

They are part of Australia's stolen generations, but can't get access to WA's redress scheme since they were removed after the 1972 cut-off date. Mr Ryder's question: "How does that address our trauma?"

Roadhouse

French barista Celia Guzman has swapped the outskirts of Paris for the red dirt of the Pilbara, choosing to take a gig at the remote Auski roadhouse.

Outback roadhouses like Auski rely on the labour of foreigners on working holiday visas to stay open.

Staff at Auski say it's a mostly quiet and repetitive job, which can be both a blessing and a curse.