Nampa woman missing for four days rescued after car falls down Canyon County ravine
After going missing four days earlier, a 72-year-old Nampa woman was saved from a Canyon County ravine in a rescue that the sheriff described as one of the most miraculous he’d ever seen.
Law enforcement asked the public for help finding Penny Clark when her family reported they hadn’t heard from her since Tuesday when she left to run errands, the Idaho Statesman previously reported.
Two men called police dispatch at 11:40 a.m. on Saturday to say they had located a vehicle that appeared to have fallen down a canyon wall on the south side of Rim Road, a Canyon County Sheriff’s Office news release said. When callers described the car, deputies realized it sounded like Clark’s, according to the release.
Canyon County Sheriff’s Office deputies used binoculars to locate the car 200 yards into the canyon and found Clark another 40 feet below it in a ravine, the sheriff’s office said. Deputies said they saw her moving and began working with Idaho Mountain Search and Rescue to create a rescue plan.
Rescuers reached her at about 1 p.m. and “determined that she was conscious and alert,” according to the sheriff’s office.
Deputies and rescuers decided that, because of the difficult terrain, the best way to get Clark to a hospital would be to stabilize and carry her to Map Rock Road, where Air St. Luke’s and Canyon County Paramedics were waiting, the sheriff’s office said. It took them about two hours. After an initial evaluation, Clark was transferred by Air St. Luke’s to a local hospital for additional medical care, the release 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,” Canyon County Sheriff Kieran Donahue said in the release.
Clark is being treated for her injuries at a local hospital, according to the sheriff’s office. Donahue said the medics who evaluated her on-scene believed that she had likely been there since Tuesday.
“It’s truly a miracle, and I’m hopeful that she makes a full recovery,” Donahue said.
Other agencies at the scene included the Nampa Police Department, Upper Deer Flat Fire, Melba Fire and Idaho Fish and Game. Officials canceled an Idaho Helicopter request after realizing “the quickest way to reach her would be on foot,” according to the sheriff’s office.
