A 72-year-old Idaho woman who had likely spent days alone in the wild was rescued after good Samaritans found her wrecked car halfway down a canyon and called for help.
Two hunters found a crushed Chevrolet that “appeared to have gone partway down the canyon wall” in the area of Map Rock Road and Rim Road just before noon local time Saturday, the Canyon County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release.
The vehicle matched the description for that of 72-year-old Penny Kay Clark, who had last been in contact with her family on Tuesday Dec. 5 and was reported missing by the Nampa Police Department, the sheriff's office said.
Deputies arrived and found her car 200 yards down the canyon wall, and to their surprise they found Clark about 40 feet below the car in a ravine. When they saw she was moving, they set up a command post and spun up a plan to rescue her.
Multiple agencies responded in the effort including the Life Flight Network, Nampa Police, Canyon County paramedics, multiple fire departments and the Idaho Department of Fish and Game.
Officials determined the fastest way to reach Clark was on foot, and at 1 p.m. local time, Idaho Mountain Search and Rescue members reached Clark and found her “conscious and alert.”
It then took two hours for search and rescue to carry Clark from where she was found to a location on Map Rock Road where medics were staged. Finally at 3 p.m., she reached the ambulance, was evaluated on site, then airlifted to an area hospital for additional medical care.
Medics who evaluated her believed she had been there “for at least a couple of days, and more than likely since Tuesday when her family last had contact with her,” Canyon County Sheriff Kieran Donahue said.
“This is frankly one of the most miraculous incidents that I can recall in all my years in law enforcement, and it’s a true testament to the strength and fortitude of Penny Clark,” the sheriff added, calling her rescue, “truly a miracle.”
Clark was last said to be recovering at a hospital with her family by her side.
