DELRAY BEACH, Fla. – A South Florida woman is recovering in the hospital after she was found naked and stuck in a storm drain.
The woman, identified as Lyndsey Kennedy, was reported missing nearly three weeks ago by her boyfriend, according to a police report.
“This was by far one of the most bizarre incidents that our officers have responded to,” said Delray Beach Police Department Public Information Officer Ted White.
Images show Delray Beach police and firefighters surrounding a storm drain near the intersection of Atlantic Blvd. and Southwest 11th Avenue early Tuesday after someone heard what sounded like a woman’s voice down below.
“A passerby heard something coming from the storm drain,” said Dani Moschella with Delray Beach Fire Rescue. “She heard a woman yelling.”
LISTEN: Authorities release 9-1-1 calls after woman is found in storm drain:
When first responders arrived, they discovered Kennedy trapped eight feet below the roadway.
“They did in fact, to their surprise, find a woman stuck in that storm drain,” said Moschella.
Delray Beach Fire’s Special Operations Team was able to remove the storm grate, lower down a ladder and hoist Kennedy up.
“She was unable to stand up,” Moschella said. “She didn’t have any clothes on. She was very dirty. She had some superficial wounds. Her knees were all scraped up.”
After she was rescued, Kennedy told detectives she’d gone swimming in a canal near her boyfriend’s home. She came across a doorway in that canal, which led to a tunnel, which she followed and followed, crawling and squirming for day, until she ended up at the storm grate where she was rescued.
“It appears she may have been in that storm drain for at least a couple of days, perhaps longer,” White said.
Kennedy was taken to Delray Medical Center to be treated for her injuries and to check on her health.
While police said there are still many unanswered questions, they are just fortunate a woman found in an area no human should be was found alive.
“To think of a person down there for any amount of time, it is terrifying,” Moschella said.
Delray Beach police believe the woman may have disappeared March 3. That’s when she was reported missing.
They are currently working on confirming that information with investigators.
“For her to say she was in the storm drain system for weeks is kind of hard to believe,” White said. “We’re trying to piece this story together to find out what is fact and what is not fact.”