Equipment Operator Orlando Avila often works in remote locations, far from houses, businesses and even roads. He was doing just that late in the day on Thursday, Oct. 2 when he noticed something unusual – a bandana tied to the top of a stick. Slowing down, he saw movement and realized someone might need help.

“I was downstream from Bouse Pumping Plant in an area so remote I didn’t even have a cell signal,” said Avila. “I kept driving until I got cell coverage and called the agent in our field office so he could respond and safety assist in the situation.”

Agent Donald Schlecht, who patrols the western portion of the CAP system, was in the nearby Bouse Field Office and immediately responded to the call. When he arrived on scene, he found a 26-year-old woman laying on a hill near the canal, dehydrated but alert. She explained that on Sept. 21, she left where she was working and just started walking. She had few supplies with her and when she saw the canal, she got closer in hopes of drinking some water.

“She’d used a tree branch and scratched SOS into the dirt, in hopes someone would find her and be able to help,” said Schlecht.

Schlecht hopped on his radio and reached out to another CAP agent, Kevin Jex. He ran her name through the national crime information center database and found she was listed as a missing and endangered person.

Schlecht loaded her into his vehicle and, once he had cell coverage, reached out to La Paz County Sheriff’s Office. He requested a deputy and medical personnel meet him at a nearby truck stop so they could handle her case from there. Partnerships with law enforcement and other first responders are relationships that are a necessity for CAP’s agents.

“You don’t ever expect to see a person in such a desolate area, and fortunately for her, we have employees who are extremely observant and know exactly what to do,” said Schlecht.

Thanks to Avila’s attentiveness, Schlecht’s quick response, and teamwork between CAP crews, Protective Services and local responders, a potentially tragic situation had a safe and hopeful outcome.