FORKS — A rescue team on Saturday found a Forks woman who disappeared Thursday evening after going into the woods to pick mushrooms.
Longtime Forks resident Allison DeMatties, 50, was found “hungry, dehydrated and weak” northeast of Mary Clark Road on Saturday afternoon, said Brian King, chief criminal deputy with Clallam County Sheriff’s Office.
She was found by the Clallam Bay/Olympic Corrections Center’s Inmate Recovery Team about 1 mile northeast of where her car was parked when she went missing, according to a press release.
Due to her physical condition, dense vegetation and blown down timber, ground teams were not able to remove her.
The Clallam Sheriff’s Office coordinated with the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office and the state Emergency Operations Center for a helicopter rescue.
According to the press release, the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office helicopter rescue team’s UH-1H Huey, SnoHawk, arrived at 6:37 p.m.
DeMatties was hoisted to safety and airlifted to William R. Fairchild International Airport in Port Angeles where medics were standing by.
Earlier in the day, a search party of friends, family, Clallam County Sheriff Search and Rescue crews, and members of the Fire District No. 3 Swift Water Rescue Team followed the Sol Duc River east and upstream toward the fish hatchery.
DeMatties was found at about 3:20 p.m. Saturday, King said.
“My mom has been found!” DeMatties’ daughter, Skyler, wrote in a public Facebook post. “Thank you to everybody who has helped in any way and all the prayers.”
DeMatties reportedly went in the woods near Mary Clark Road with area resident Boe Baker to pick chanterelle mushrooms between 3 p.m. and 4 p.m. Thursday.
Baker said they separated almost immediately while picking mushrooms. He told deputies he became lost and crossed the Sol Duc River before wandering out of the woods near Bear Creek.
King said Forks community members played an active role in the search efforts Friday and Saturday.
“It’s a small community, and everybody wants to help,” he said.
Clallam County Fire District 1 and Forks Ambulance crews also responded to the scene Saturday to provide additional manpower and support.
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