KUAOTUNU, New Zealand, April 21 (UPI) -- A 70-year-old New Zealand woman missing for three days was rescued by helicopter Sunday from a car crash down a 650-foot ravine, police said.
Shirley Anne Erin Loft was reported missing Thursday and was found three days later by neighbors searching for her, The New Zealand Herald reported.
Geoff Gillett and Valance McLaughlin reported seeing scuff marks that looked "not quite right" on the side of Black Jack Road near Kuaotunu and climbed down the steep ravine, where they found Loft under a tree near her car. Police said they believe she had pulled herself from her crashed vehicle and drank water from a stream at the bottom of the ravine.
"While Mr. McLaughlin climbed back up the 200-meter bank to raise the alarm, Mr. Gillett stayed with Shirley to comfort her and before long members of the Kuaotunu and Whitianga Volunteer Fire Brigades arrived along with local ambulance crews to begin the prolonged recovery effort," Constable Don Edgecombe told the newspaper, adding she was in "remarkably good condition physically."
Loft was pulled from the ravine by helicopter and transferred to Thames Hospital with minor injuries.
