A 47-year-old woman, who went missing in November, was found to have survived for five months in a Utah state-owned forest tent, drinking river water, eating moss and grass.
The undesignated woman was described by local police as “witty.” Police accidentally found her after going out to pick up the crashed drone she was using during the search.
The search and rescue mission began on November 25, last year, after abandoned cars and camping equipment were discovered by US Forest Office authorities. They were preparing for the seasonal closure of part of the Spanish Fork Canyon, 50 miles south of Salt Lake City.
Despite having a female identity, the officer was unable to contact her family, but a former colleague said she did not know where she was.
After a harsh winter, temperatures dropped to -10 degrees Celsius at night, and police officers worked with a non-profit area search organization to fly a drone to the area on Sunday.
When the drone crashed and was trying to get it back, I came across what the sergeant and drone pilot thought were abandoned tents.
But as they approached it, the zipper opened and the woman stuck out her head.
“She now believes she deliberately chose to stay in the area for several months starting in November 2020,” a statement from the Utah County Sheriff’s Office said.
“She had a small amount of food. She told SAR staff that she was looking for food for grass and moss to survive. She also had enough water in a nearby river. It was available. “
But she “had lost a lot of weight and was weak,” police added.
Due to her condition, she was taken to a local hospital for mental health assessment.
“Many people may choose not to live in the circumstances and conditions that this woman did, but she wants to make it clear that she did nothing to violate the law,” they said.
“In the future, she may choose to return to the same area.”