Located Safe: Eileen Springer, 62 - Oklahoma

Family members of a woman reported missing June 4 nearly gave up hope for a positive outcome before learning early Thursday she had been found alive.

Eileen Springer, 62, was found inside her sport utility vehicle, which was stuck along a muddy trail west of the Arkansas River and just south of U.S. 62. Springer, who was the subject of a Silver Alert, was found by a fisherman who was passing by about 3:30 a.m.

"She was literally about a mile from home — we tore these roads looking for her, but where she was we never would have been able to see her," Derek Bateman said about the search for his mother-in-law. "Where she was, nobody could have seen her unless they were on the river or on their way there."

Bateman said the family was fortunate that turned out to be the case when the fisherman, who has yet be identified, happened along a path from which he spotted Springer's SUV. The man told police he had seen Springer's Dodge Durango three days earlier and then decided to investigate further when he found it still there Thursday morning.

Fort Gibson police canine Officer Lee Phillips said the "good Samaritan" was able to get Springer into his vehicle and was taking her to town when he got stuck in the ditch. Phillips said he was returning to work from Muskogee when he saw flashing lights below the Arkansas River bridge and turned back to investigate.

"She was responsive and knew what year it was, but she wasn't really sure how she got to where she was," Phillips said. "You don't really expect things to end that well when it has been that long in a lot of cases."

Bateman said his mother-in-law survived the weeklong ordeal by eating cherry tomatoes she had bought along with other groceries before she went missing. In addition to the nutrients, the tomatoes and some rainwater she was able to collect provided the hydration Springer needed to stay alive.

"She has to be the toughest woman we know," Bateman said of Springer, who is battling stage 4 cancer. "When she got to the hospital she was joking around, she looked at my wife ... and said, 'You've got to be the worst baby-sitter ever.'"

Bateman said the ordeal took a toll on him and his wife, who was about to lose hope of finding her mother alive. The Batemans drove across the U.S. 62 bridge that rises just above the area where Springer was found, but they saw no signs of her or the SUV she was driving.

"She had prepared herself for the worse and had almost given up hope," Bateman said about his wife, Ricki Bateman, before police showed up on their doorstep about 4 a.m. Thursday. "She kept saying the one thing that didn't make sense was that they couldn't find the vehicle."

Bateman said Springer was able to cling to life by holding out hope of being reunited with her family.

"She said the thing that kept her going was the thought of not being able to say good-bye," Bateman said. "She is tough, but that is taking survival to the extreme."

Bateman said his mother-in-law is recuperating and being treated at EASTAR for "a severe kidney infection" exacerbated by dehydration. Hospital officials said Springer was listed as stable, but her condition was unknown.

Source: http://www.muskogeephoenix.com/local/x1760100584/Woman-found-alive-after-week

 

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