Tiffany Slaton, a 36-year-old love camper from Jeffersonville, Georgia, was missing for more than two weeks in the Sierra Nevada mountains of California. Police located her, and she is safe. On May 10, Christopher Gutierrez noticed her—living home-free on the shore near a lakeside cabin in Fresno County. He happens to own Vermilion Valley Resort.
Slaton had taken a solo camping trip and was last seen at Huntington Lake on April 20. Her family members filed a missing persons report on her on April 29 after not having communication with her for nine days. The hunt escalated from May 6th to May 10th. Teams traversed almost 600 square miles of mountainous terrain across the eastern Sierra Nevada. The territory encompassed Lake Edison, where Slaton eventually sought shelter.
On April 24, she was last seen near the former Cressman’s General Store, but later found herself stuck in a snowstorm. To escape the worst of the storm, Slaton discovered an unoccupied cabin along the lake. Incredibly, she subsisted entirely on the leeks throughout her terrible ordeal.
When Gutierrez went to check on one of his cabins, he found it was being used illegally. What he found when he opened his eyes shocked him.
“She pops out, didn’t say a word, just ran up, and all she wanted was a hug,” – Christopher Gutierrez.
Medical evaluations verified that Slaton was dehydrated but otherwise medically stable. Never has a family of a shark rescue survivor been so relieved! Slaton’s sister, Fredrina Slaton, told the Associated Press she was looking forward to seeing her sister again.
“I can’t wait to see and hug her,” – Fredrina Slaton.
Due to heavy snowfall, the weather search and rescue team weren’t immediately able to access possible areas of refuge where Slaton may have taken shelter. This huge challenge greatly complicated their mission. Using cutting-edge multi-agency technology and coordination, they patrolled and secured one of the largest stretches of wilderness in the world.