Stranded Real-Life Lady MacGyver Survives For 9 Days On Snow & Candy Bars

A 23-year-old student who lived on melted snow and candy bars during a 9 day ordeal in remote Arizona says she’s thankful to be alive. And that’s the last time she house sits at Dakota Fanning’s ski chalet.

Lauren Weinberg left her mother’s house to go for a drive on December 12. Her itty bitty Toyota got stuck near the remote Mogollon Rim between Phoenix and Flagstaff. She wasn’t able to call for help because her cell phone battery was dead. And then it began snowing— 33 inches.

Friends and loved ones began worrying about Weinberg when she missed her final exams, which they say was uncharacteristic of her. She was reported missing a few days after her disappearance, and authorities were flummoxed. Her trail had gone completely (no pun intended) cold.

Meanwhile, stuck in a car high in the mountains, Weinberg was in a tight spot— no food except for two candy bars, no water except for the snow that hemmed her in, no cell phone battery, and no way to know how to get out. Rather than doing the rash thing and venturing out by herself, she fucking MacGyvered like a champion, packing snow into a water bottle and melting it by letting it sit on the roof of her car, staying inside and warm as much as possible. And her patience paid off.

Yesterday, two park rangers on snowmobiles came across Lauren’s stranded car. They weren’t looking for her specifically; they were checking to make sure that the gate to the now-impassible mountain road was closed. They found Lauren tired, cold, and hungry, but alive and ecstatic.

She’s now recovering in a Flagstaff hospital and is in good condition, and “grateful to be alive and warm.” While she’s expected to be released with a clean bill of health soon, it may be awhile before she can look at another candy bar.

Phoenix Woman Snowbound For 9 Days In Remote Coconino County [Arizona Daily Sun]