INNISFAIL – RCMP is still probing a woman’s “strange” case of winding up trapped in her car with her dog in the middle of the night after her vehicle fell off a cliff into the Red Deer River.
The 62-year-old Alberta woman, who is not from Innisfail, was rescued by members of the Innisfail Fire Department shortly after 7 a.m. on May 8 after a report was received of a submerged motor vehicle in the Red Deer River, located about a kilometre downstream and north of Highway 54.
According to fire department officials, the woman and her Chihuahua dog were rescued after the SUV, which was driven in darkness on a quad trail, had fallen 20 feet off a cliff and into the water at about 2 a.m.
Five hours later a fire department rescue team, after receiving a report of a honking vehicle from the river, deployed a boat to make the rescue.
Once back to a staging area on Highway 54, the woman was handed over to the RCMP.
“We didn't actually take her into custody. She didn't get arrested or anything like that. The police officers gave her a ride to the office so she can make arrangements,” said Innisfail RCMP Staff Sgt. Ian Ihme.
He said the woman’s vehicle, a small four-wheel drive SUV, was ultimately towed once it was hauled out of the river and brought to Highway 54.
Ihme added the woman did not appear to be under the influence of either drugs or alcohol.
“What she was actually doing and how she ended up into the river is still a bit of a mystery,” said Ihme, adding that while the woman was never detained, she could still face provincial violation ticket offences.
“We're still kind of looking into the matter to figure out what actually happened because it doesn't make a lot of sense to end up in the river that way,” said Ihme. “There's definitely some sort of offence. For one, you shouldn't have a car down there.”
He said an RCMP investigator for the case will be making a decision later this month on whether to lay provincial violation charges.
“The whole circumstances do seem strange, to say the least,” said Ihme. “I believe her story was that she was just looking for a quiet place to sleep because she was travelling from point A to point B. But how somebody would find that an acceptable road to drive I honestly don’t have any idea.”
