A woman had to be rescued from mud and floodwater near Lone Elk Park on May 3. The Eureka Fire Protection District responded to the call on Castlewood Loop of the Chub Trail, near the park, which is near Valley Park.
Scott Barthelmass, the fire district’s public information officer, said a woman in her mid-50s was hiking and fell off the trail into floodwater. She ended up in deeper water and became buried to her waist in mud, he said.
The woman was able to retrieve her cell phone and called 911.
Barthelmass said crews searched on foot and with terrain vehicles for the woman. He said crews used pinning technology on the woman's phone to help locate her.
He said she was unable to be reached by land and the Missouri Highway Patrol’s marine division launched a boat to rescue her.
Crews were dispatched at 11:46 a.m., the woman was rescued at 12:59 p.m. and crews left the scene at 1:26 p.m., Barthelmass said.
He said there was no one else around to witness the accident and added that if the woman had not been able to contact first responders, there might have been a “tragic outcome.”
The Fenton, MetroWest, West County and Valley Park fire protection districts helped with the call.
St. Louis County Police, St. Louis County Park Rangers, Missouri State Highway Patrol and Missouri State Park Rangers were also on scene.