A 72-year-old woman driving from Riddle to Depot Bay ventured off course somehow and ended up stuck in a Mary’s River Estates area drainage ditch early Thursday, the Benton County Sheriff’s Office and Philomath Fire and Rescue reported.
The sheriff’s office believed the woman may be suffering from cognitive disorder, but that could not be confirmed.
“Sometime overnight, she ended up at the Iris Circle address and got stuck in a ditch,” BCSO reported. “She was passed out when contacted this morning and medics transported her to Good Sam.”
Officials were dispatched at 8:28 a.m. to the scene of the incident, an area between Iris Circle and Tansy Drive about 3 miles northwest of Philomath. Deputy Fire Chief Rich Saalsaa, public information officer, said that when he arrived, he could see a vehicle approximately 100 yards from Tansy Drive down a steep embankment.
“She was uninjured but confused and disoriented as to how she ended up where she was,” Saalsaa said.
Riddle is located about 24 miles south of Roseburg and 143 miles from Philomath. Property owners discovered the vehicle and called 911.
“Security cameras on the property show that the vehicle traveled up the steep driveway near 4 a.m. to the property and then continued through the grassy area to the rear of the house until it came to rest in a drainage ditch,” Saalsaa said. “The driver appeared to have been in the vehicle the whole time until our arrival. She stated she could not reach her husband by cellphone.”
The Corvallis Fire Department responded with an ambulance to transport the woman to Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center for further assessment.