Jefferson County firefighters recently helped search for and rescue a 46-year-old Sullivan woman lost in the Mark Twain National Forest in the Berryman area.
John Scullin, spokesman for the De Soto Rural Fire Protection District, said the search and rescue on Oct. 14 involved dozens of emergency responders.
“There were probably 70 to 75 people involved. They were using UTVs and other off-road vehicles,” said Scullin, a paramedic-firefighter who participated in the effort.
Along with De Soto Rural personnel, firefighters from the Hillsboro and Mapaville fire protection districts and the De Soto Fire Department also took part in the search and rescue, which lasted from the afternoon into the night, Scullin said.
He said the Rock Community Fire Protection District brought a drone.
“It started about 2 p.m.,” Scullin said. “The woman works at a ranch off Hwy. W. It borders the forest. She got disoriented in the woods.”
The woman attempted to use her cell phone to call for help. Although the call did not connect with anyone, her location could be traced, in general, through the cell phone, Scullin said.
Still, it was not easy to find the woman in the forest, particularly after it started to get dark, he said.
After hours of searching, some Potosi firefighters finally heard the woman calling for help, Scullin said.
“Even then, it probably took another hour to locate her,” he said. “They found her around 11 p.m. She didn’t know her 911 call had gotten through to anyone. She’d kind of taken shelter for the night under a bush. She had a small flashlight and left it out hoping someone would find the light. They did. It took them almost an hour to get her back to the command post, about midnight.”
Scullin tended to the woman.
“I was the only paramedic there at the time,” he said. “She had no injuries. I checked her out and she was fine.”
Hillsboro Fire Chief Brian Gaudet praised all those involved in the search and rescue.
“It was a great coordinated effort for all the agencies in the area to come together for the missing woman,” he said.