Shortcut Turned Deadly on Way to Mother's Day Dinner

A California couple set out for their son's La Quinta home on May 10 for a Mother's Day dinner. They never made it. Two weeks later, Dianna Bedwell, 68, has been found severely dehydrated in a white vehicle in a remote part of San Diego County; her husband's body was found nearby. The AP reports Bedwell and Cecil Knutson, 79, left the Valley View Casino in Valley Center that Sunday afternoon; Bedwell told investigators they were looking for a shortcut when they got lost and their car became stranded on a rugged road.

Sheriff's Lt. Ken Nelson describes Bedwell's survival as "close to a miracle. It would be difficult for someone in good health to survive being in the wild for that long, let alone someone like her." She's reportedly diabetic, as was her husband. She says she survived on rain water and some snacks that were in the car. The San Diego Union-Tribune reports the family had hired a private investigator to look for the pair; their car was ultimately found by people riding off-road vehicles some 35 miles from the casino. (More missing person stories.)