A California woman trapped on top of her overturned and submerged vehicle was rescued by helicopter Tuesday morning after spending the entire night on her makeshift boat.
“It could have ended completely differently. She could have been carried downstream, but she was strong enough to climb onto the vehicle. Maybe out of tenacity or luck,” Alameda County Fire Chief Kent Carlin told CBS News on Tuesday.
Monday evening around 7 p.m., the driver allegedly attempted to cross a stream in Livermore, California after underestimating its depth, before her vehicle was overturned by the waves, according to the fire department.
Fortunately, despite the strong current, she then managed to get out through the window to climb on top of her overturned and submerged car, where she waited all night hoping to see help come.
It was not until the next morning, around 10 a.m., that a camper, Bob Sitzwohl, saw her after being alerted by her cries.
“She was very lucky. If there had been no one at the campsite, she could have stayed there much longer,” the fire chief told the American media.
According to images shared by the fire department, the refrigerated woman was finally able to be rescued by helicopter after 15 hours in her poor posture, grabbed by one of the firefighters at the end of a cable.
She was transported to a local hospital where she is expected to make a full recovery from her mishap, according to CBS News.
