A woman was found alive inside her vehicle Wednesday after she went missing in Butte Meadows, California, six days ago.
When 68-year-old Paula Beth James, who has dementia, went missing last week, her family feared the worst, according to CBS 42.
“We thought she was probably dead,” said James’s stepdaughter, Laura Powell.
Authorities issued a California Highway Patrol (CHP) Silver Alert once the senior’s family told them they could not find her, according to a press release from the Butte County Sheriff’s Office (BCSO).
Thankfully, a helicopter spotted the SUV in the mountains 50 miles north of her Oroville home and rescuers took immediate action.
“The pilot landed the helicopter and two BCSO employees hiked to the vehicle, which was located approximately 150 yards off the roadway on Skyway, and located James alive,” the press release read.
Officials did not say how exactly her SUV ended up on the side of the road.
Once rescuers reached James, she was awake but slightly frostbitten and suffering from severe dehydration.
“She looked at them and she said, ‘I’m very cold, I hope you brought a blanket,’” Powell commented, adding that her stepmom stayed warm by periodically turning on the car’s heater and wrapping herself in moving blankets and the vehicle’s floor mats.
Following her rescue, James was taken to a local hospital in stable condition.
Powell expressed her gratefulness to local authorities for working hard for more than 100 hours to find and rescue her stepmom.
“I really want to say thank you from the bottom of my heart to the sheriff’s department. They want above and beyond, and we really appreciate them for that.”
“I just am so thankful for the relief that everyone is going to have tonight knowing that she’s safe and warm and fed and we’ll get to bring her home soon,” she concluded.