A woman who was reported missing for two weeks after a Mother's Day trip appears to be on the path to recovery, attorney Gloria Allred said.
Dianna Bedwell Knutson, 67, was found with her partner, Cecil "Paul" Knutson, 79, on May 24 in their car off a rocky path in a remote desert area east of San Diego, though Cecil was found dead. When Bedwell was found, she was airlifted to the intensive care unit of Palomar Medical Center in Escondido.
"Her son and daughter were frequent visitors there and prayed for her speedy recovery," Allred said Monday in a statement.
Last week Bedwell was transferred to Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs to be closer to her family, Allred said, and later to Eisenhower Medical Center in Rancho Mirage.
The woman is now at an undisclosed location in Palm Springs as she begins the rehabilitation process. Allred said she will have further updates once she visits her on Tuesday.
"She thanks the public for their support and deeply appreciates all of the prayers for her recovery," Allred said in a statement.
The couple left the casino on Mother's Day and headed to their son's house in La Quinta, sheriff's officials said. They said the couple tried to take a shortcut several miles from the main road and ended up stuck on boulders in rugged terrain, Nelson added.
Officials said they did not suspect foul play and they believe the couple went the wrong way and got lost.
Cups placed around the car indicated the couple collected rain water to drink and survived a part of the time on oranges and pie, Nelson said.
Their Sonata was found by a man four wheeling in a remote and rocky area near Warner Springs along Highway 79, approximately 47 miles from the casino where they were last seen.
The couple had not been heard from in two weeks, despite the efforts of family members, a search-and-rescue crew and San Diego County Sheriff’s Department investigators. Dozens of volunteers and a sheriff's search-and-rescue crew scoured several areas between north San Diego and Riverside counties to no avail.
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The man that found the couple said Bedwell was singing praises of her companion, telling him Knutson fought to get them out of there while working to keep her comfortable. He was the one that put cups for water around the car.
