An Albuquerque woman missing for almost a month in New Mexico’s vast Gila National Forest has been found alive – and with her cat.
Margaret Page, 41, was found by members of the Mesilla Valley Search and Rescue team about a mile from a trail where she had gone hiking with her cat sometime between February 10 to12.
When the 27-member and two dog search team spotted Page, she was found wrapped up in a blue sleeping bag, malnourished and bony, but well-hydrated, David Kuthe, the incident commander of the search, told the Las Cruces Sun News.
She was probably living off of water from a nearby creek and feeding Miya, her cat, and herself with the food she had brought with her, said the newspaper.
Page, who had lost one-third of her body weight, was immediately taken by ambulance to Gila Regional Medical Center and checked herself out later that night. Her cat was described as “sluggish” and “thin”.
Page was initially reported missing on February 14 with the Albuquerque Police Department by her mother.
A Forest Service agent located Page’s car by the trailhead on February 12, two days after Page left Albuquerque after telling her family that she was going to Florida.
