NCSHP Trooper Locates Missing Woman Stranded During Storm
Persistent Trooper braves the storm to locate stranded Virginia woman in Caswell County
On Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026, at approximately 7:40 a.m., Trooper K. T. Underwood was dispatched to the area of Green Tree Road in Caswell County regarding a vehicle in a ditch reported by OnStar.
Due to the snow and icy weather conditions that were blanketing the region, Trooper Underwood navigated extremely poor road conditions to finally arrive to the area, ultimately having to turn around inside of the Virginia border to reach the North Carolina portion of Green Tree Road, which is a dead-end road.
Upon arriving to Green Tree Road, Underwood circulated the area, but did not initially find a vehicle nor any tire tracks in the snow. This elevated Underwood’s concern, since the likelihood of the vehicle having been stranded for a significant period of time overnight was now becoming apparent.
At approximately 9:00 a.m., Trooper Underwood successfully located the vehicle off the left shoulder of the roadway, facing south, in a steep ditch near the dead end. The vehicle had traveled approximately 70-75 ft. downhill and was not visible from the highway at all. The vehicle was covered in snow and ice and did not appear to be running. As Underwood approached the vehicle on foot, he could hear an OnStar operator speaking with an occupant in the vehicle.
Trooper Underwood made contact with the driver, an 81-year-old woman from nearby Danville, Virginia. The woman stated that she had become lost the previous evening after purchasing groceries and pulled over to enter her home address into her vehicle’s GPS system. She went on to explain that after pulling over, her vehicle slid off the icy roadway and down into the embankment where it remained stuck.
Fatigued and extremely cold, the woman was immediately assisted by Trooper Underwood and moved to his patrol vehicle to help provide additional warmth. As Underwood confirmed the woman’s identity, the State Highway Patrol Communications Center alerted him that the woman and her vehicle had been reported missing by the Pittsylvania County Sheriff’s Office in Virginia the previous day.
In further discussion with the woman, Trooper Underwood discovered just how much of a fighter she was throughout this ordeal. She explained that her cellular phone had been left at home and although her vehicle was equipped with OnStar, she did not have an active subscription. She stated that she continued attempting to drive the vehicle out of the ditch until it ran out of fuel at approximately 10:00 p.m. the night before. She then pressed the OnStar button repeatedly until she was able to make contact with an operator. Stranded and exposed to freezing temperatures that were dropping into the lower teens overnight, she remained hopeful that assistance would arrive, and ultimately endured a grueling night alone in her vehicle until Trooper Underwood located her the next morning.
The woman was evaluated by emergency responders and stated that she did not need to go to the hospital, and that she would much rather go home. Deputies from Virginia happily honored this request and transported her home to be reunited with her family in Danville.
Trooper Underwood exhibited tremendous persistence in locating the vehicle as well as immense professionalism while interacting with the driver, and we commend him for such a job well done. Above all, we commend this courageous woman for her boundless bravery and unbroken will to fight during a time when survival was on the line.
