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If you've been thinking about getting a haircut before going on a camping trip, you may want to reconsider. After being stranded in the wilderness, it was only by sucking the moisture from her hair that 68-year-old Cynthia Hoover managed to stay alive for five days.While driving on a mountain road near Central City, Colo., Cynthia swerved to avoid a herd of deer. Her car rolled off the road and 350 feet down a steep hillside. She broke eleven ribs, cracked her vertebrae and punctured her lung. Stranded alone in the ravine, she says that thoughts of her family motivated her to stay alive.
She grabbed a golf club from her car to use as a cane to help her make the climb up the slope toward civilization, but was so badly injured that she couldn't make all the way. She turned around and headed for a mining operation that was downhill, planning to use the golf club for self-defense if wild animals tried to attack her in the night, which fortunately never happened.
Since her car rolled too far from the highway, and Cynthia often traveled on business alone, nobody noticed the accident or reported her missing. She was alone in the woods for five days, basically crawling on her face, through a cold front of rain, sleet and hail. This moisture would prove to be life-sustaining, as she sucked on her hair to keep from becoming completely dehydrated during her ordeal.
Eventually she managed to crawl 450 feet away from the mining operation and attracted the attention of the workers, who were only there on a fluke since the mine was supposed to be closed that day -- by calling out. They found her with a swollen face and a mouth full of dirt from dragging herself with her face on the ground. She was airlifted to a hospital where she was listed in critical condition, but has since been downgraded to fair condition.
It's an incredibly remarkable survival story and also a testament to the fact that long hair isn't just vanity -- it can also help save your life.
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Monday 21 September
By Ted
Best wishes to Cynthia for a speedy recovery.
As for the proper terminology for her medical condition, she went from critical and improved to fair, so the story should read that her her condition was "upgraded". If her condition worsened from critical to grave, as in near death, then her condition would have "downgraded".
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Monday 21 September
By dazuiba715
hoho
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Monday 21 September
By Ann
Are you sure that wasn't a dream you had?
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Monday 21 September
By donny
Ann, your questions "Do you have kids or know of any kids? Have they ever fallen down and skinned their knee or bumped their head, maybe broke their arm, anything like that? Did you ALLOW that to happen so that kid would be hurt and cry? Is it your fault every time your child falls?" are sort of irrelevant God is Omniscient (all knowing) and Omnipotent (all powerful) if you knew you kid was about to fall down and skin their knee, bumped their head, or broke their arm you would do nothing to prevent it? It only makes sense as a lesson to not repeat their actions. What actions was god trying to teach this woman or society to not repeat? To not swerve to miss things in the road? To have long hair in case we have no water and are thirsty? To not drive cars? (maybe the Amish are onto something)
Or is god too busy to deal with the mundane details like where deer are? I don't believe he is too busy for anything to be out of his view at any moment, even things that have not even happened yet. God know he was going to drive off the cliff, he knew she was going to crawl through the mud on her face to safety, so she did not need a miracle. Let us not attribute one person's strength to God directly. This is her triumph. God was watching over her and if she needed his help I am sure she would have gotten if she was a good person.
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Monday 21 September
By Ann
Hi Donny... "Allow" as in plan... in a sense it's caused by planning it. I should have used the word cause instead. God does allow things in another sense by not intervening directly. God knew she was going to crash, but did she know? She may or may not of needed a miracle to survive physically, but what about spiritually? What condition could her heart of been in before this happened? God already knew, but the important thing to Him was for her to know something or possibly someone else. There are many reasons why God uses us and our circumstances for our eyes to be open and come to a new understanding of things and spiritual growth. Our spiritual condition is what is most important to God, not our circumstances. It's how we handle our circumstances that allows us to grow spiritually. And God does not act only because someone is good. If that were the case, then we are ALL doomed to be spiritually separated from Him. No one has any strength without God... He created us and our strength comes from Him. It appears to me that you believe in God, but only if He's in the back seat and goes along with your plans and you might call on him if you're overwhelmed like a child going out to get the paper or the mail for you while you're busy cooking. All the glory for all good belongs to Him.. it comes from Him. And that doesn't mean we are to have our heads hung low and not ever feel strong and worthy and have low self esteem about ourselves and think we are nothing and can never measure up to Him. His love for us makes us worthy. And to believe in Him makes us spiritually worthy. We don't have to prove anything to Him, but only recognize Him and His power and where ALL good comes from. To think otherwise is self pride and pride was the first sin committed in Heaven and on Earth. Self pride is a very dangerous spiritual condition. "Pride comes before every fall". Not that we are never proud, but it's a certain degree and definition of pride that will kill us spiritually.
Monday 21 September
By Sherrie
When my daughter was born she was very ill, near death, in CRITCAL condition. As her conditon improved and things were not as serious, her conditon was UPGRADED to stable, then fair and so on...until she was completely better.
I understand what this writer intended to mean when using the term downgraded, but it is incorrect in a medical situation.
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Monday 21 September
By AZ :) Johnboy
Almost twenty years ago, I lived in Central City and surrounding area. I was also on the C.C.F.D., Chief Allen was right on the money when he stated that Cynthia was an extremely lucky and courageous Lady to have survived her ordeal. That area of Colorado, is stunningly beautiful, and at the same time, deadly. The weather can go from 70 degrees in the morning, and by the afternoon, snowing, and 35 degrees colder. There are old mine shafts everywhere that can be hundreds of feet deep. There is also quite the variety
of wild animals, just out looking for a daily meal! Be it luck, or GOD, or just a collection of sercumstances, She is alive and getting better. She was extremely lucky that those miners were around when they were to access help.
Cudos to the CCFD,Gilpin Co. Search and Rescue, the Med Techs(EMTS), SAINT A's Flight for Life, and all others who were involved. In stead or arguing
about the vernacular as to "upgraded", "punctured a lung", and discussions about "Religion", be grateful that she is alive, and is surviving her ordeal. Most of the times we were called out on a search for a missing person('s), 7 out of 10 times, a call for the Coroner, was the end result. Great, fast, and professional response to all involved, 370 is 10-7.
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Monday 21 September
By AZ:) Johnboy
Please forgive me for any misspellings, incorrect grammar, and punctuation.
370 Out
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Monday 21 September
By D.B.COOPER
well didn't God send those deer in front of her , she was on a gambling binge and had to wreck her car so her husband wouldn't kill her when he found out she spent all thier money
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Monday 21 September
By bambis dad
you mean to tell me she did not break a hip that is a miriacle ,
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Tuesday 22 September
By Tony
I travel this same road 2-3 times a month to go gambling in Central City and Blackhawk. I can re-call exactly where she went off the road because of the tiny mine site sign advertised at the accident location. This is an extremely desolate area 9000 feet+ above sea level and the nights would have been extremely cool but not freezing last week. Very little rain. I have seen bear in this area, so her animal concerns were valid. Rattlesnakes are common in this location, as well as bobcats, and coyotes. Her survival in this location, with those kind of injuries, and her age, no food, is absolutely nothing short of sheer determination for survival and maybe a little help from a higher authority. 5 days and nights! Give this 'ol woman kudos. This is just a remarkable story of survival. With the weather this week, she would not have made it past one night.
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Tuesday 22 September
By Tony
Julie, in answer to your "where's the lady's cell phone", do you have blond hair? Several reasons may come to light here. She didn't have one, she couldn't find it after the accident, it was crushed, or just maybe she had one , found it, but no service down in that ravine area. Better yet, since I travel that road a few times a month and know this location, I have no service in that area with "T-mobile" or other areas along that 7mile+ long road from I-70 to downtown Central City. It's obvious, she probably does not have blond hair like you.
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Thursday 24 September
By stacy
I take exception to your use of "Dumb Blondes". I wish the sterotype could be changed to say BLEACHED blondes. I am a natural blonde and every natural blonde I know (few and far between) are intelligent, educated women not of the Jerry Springer variety. Let's see, I guess it is still okay to make fun of blondes, gays, and fat people. We still have a long way to go!
Tuesday 22 September
By Thad Matthews
Hit the deer, do not swerve into the other lane, or run off the road. I have had this happen to me twice here in western Washington in fifty years of driving and have never hurt myself or another. Didn't do my vehicle any good though. I know of people who have died to miss a squirrel. I really hope she recovers soon.
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Tuesday 22 September
By fknhippie
that is one fucking hard core granny right there :D
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Tuesday 22 September
By BoJatey
It's about faith Dan, finding something good in a bad situation. A state of mind. Yeah the world is a screwed up place but if you look closely there is beauty everywhere. Next time you respond to someone or something, go the positve route. You just might feel, and in the process make somebody else feel, better.
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Tuesday 22 September
By dmanders2
so, let me get this straight, she swerved to aviod a deer, and instead of hitting the deer at what ever speed she was traveling, she decieded to drive off the cliff instead. hey, if it was a moose then i would probably do the same but a deer, i would take my chances having it for dinner.
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Tuesday 22 September
By JesusLuvsU_Dan
to Dan
=] God is always more powerful than the devil, he gave the ENTIRE nation strength to carry on and become more unified, & prevent anymore future attacks
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Tuesday 22 September
By mikerufor69
with all that rain sleet and hail how come she had to suck on her hair ?
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Tuesday 22 September
By JIMMIE
God was watching over her, even if you don't believe it or not and if you don't I feel sorry for you. God dose thinks that you would not understand.
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