CRIME, POLICE + COURTS
Missing Farmington woman found safe after a night in mountains
May 6, 2021, 8:41 PM | Updated: Dec 29, 2022, 12:16 pm
(Part of the team who helped fond Laura Waldron. Photo: Paul Nelson)
(Part of the team who helped fond Laura Waldron. Photo: Paul Nelson)
FARMINGTON, Utah — A missing Farmington woman is in a hospital and reunited with her family after she got lost and spent the night in the mountains by her home.
Family members of Laura Waldron mentioned she loved hiking and walking nearby trails with her dogs. She reportedly does it every day, despite having dementia.
Her brother, Chad Waldron, said, “She does suffer from dementia, but her comfort place to go was the hills behind her house.”
These hikes are her daily routine, so family developed a system for her to find her way back home.
“They use landmarks to get her back. Cannonball is one of the landmarks that she uses,” her brother said.
However, this time, investigators report Waldron became disoriented and ended up near the Hornet Creek area, which is nearly 6,500 feet high. Farmington Police Chief Wayne Hansen reported getting to that spot was no easy task because of the harsh terrain.
“To get where she got, she had to get through some pretty thick brush and really work to get where she was,” Hansen said.
(A Department of Public Safety helicopter crew was called to search the mountain above Farmington. Photo: Paul Nelson)
Search and rescue crews started searching Wednesday evening but had to call it off when it became dark. The search resumed Thursday morning, with drones and helicopters called in to search.
Around 3:30 p.m., the chopper team spotted Waldron who was dehydrated and had a nasty sunburn but was otherwise fine.
“She has been transported to an area hospital. She was conscious, alert and talking to the team,” Hansen said. “Both dogs were happy to see people.”
Crews walked the two dogs down from the mountain.
Contributing: Mike Anderson, KSL TV
