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Woman missing for SIX MONTHS found in tent 'living off moss'

A woman who has been missing for six months has been found living in a small tent surviving off moss and grass.

In November, a car was found in the car park of the Forest Service campground in the Diamond Fork area of Spanish Fork Canyon, in the US state of Utah.

According to the Utah County Sheriff's Office, camping gear had also been uncovered and they identified a person who had been camping in the area.

A red car is seen in a carpark.
The woman's car was found abandoned in a carpark in November. Source: Utah County Sheriff's Office

After detectives and search and rescue officials combed the area on the ground and by air, they could not locate the missing person.

Police then received information via telephone the woman might be in Colorado, and believed she had abandoned her car and camping equipment.

Over the past months, police have been attempting to contact the woman's family, but to no avail.

They did however receive information the missing woman had possibly been struggling with mental health issues.

A red tent in the Diamond Fork camping area in Utah.
Police found the woman in a tent after they crashed a drone. Source: Utah County Sheriff's Office

Shocking discovery in search for missing woman

Police said they were conducting a search for the woman in the Diamond Fork area when one of their drones crashed.

As the drone pilot and a sergeant went to find it, they discovered a tent in the hills they thought was abandoned.

But when they zipped open the tent, they located the woman they were searching for.

A towel and a chair are seen inside the tent.
The woman was found living off moss and living in a tent. Source: Utah County Sheriff's Office

"This woman, age 47, had lost a significant amount of weight and was weak," the Utah County Sheriff's Office said in a statement.

"But she was apparently also resourceful. And we now believe she knowingly chose to remain in the area over the months since November 2020."

The woman told police she had a small amount of food, but she had foraged for grass and moss to stay alive.

She was taken to hospital for a mental health evaluation.

"We want to be clear that while many people might choose to not live in the circumstances and conditions this woman did, she did nothing against the law," police said in a statement.

"And in the future she might choose to return to the same area."

Police said resources had been made available to her.

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