LAKE OF THE WOODS, CA (Friday, Feb. 7, 2014 at 3:30 p.m.)—Early-morning commuters reported that a woman was seen near the roadside in Lake of the Woods at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in Lake of the Woods during the pre-dawn hours.

Kern County Sheriff’s Sgt. Mark Brown said initial reports were received at 5:15 a.m. about a woman in distress near the church and further reports indicated she was partially clothed.

“When our deputy arrived, he found some clothing on the church property near a retaining wall, but the woman could not be found,” Brown said. CHP officers arrived and assisted in a search.

“The deputy noticed that vehicles on the roadway were slowing and swerving to avoid something. Cars were stopping,” Brown continued. “They found her crawling near the road, completely nude and shivering uncontrollably. She was so cold she could barely speak. She had lacerations on her knees and above one of her knees” he said. Law enforcement personnel got her wrapped up in a blanket as Hall Ambulance paramedics were arriving.

After she was able to warm up inside the ambulance, Brown said the woman confirmed for deputies that she had not been a victim of a crime and had not been assaulted. He said they did not know the circumstances of how she got to the location, but she lives in the 6000 block of Frazier Mountain Park Road, which is in the Lake of the Woods area.

Brown said paramedics asked the deputies whether they needed to take her into custody and they responded that no crime appeared to have been committed, so they would not.

“The paramedics said, ‘That’s good because we need to get her to a hospital,'” Brown said.

The woman was taken by Hall Ambulance Service to Kern Medical Center for evaluation and treatment of her inuries.

This is part of the February 7, 2014 online edition of The Mountain Enterprise.

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