Missing woman in Nevada County found alive and dehydrated nearly 2 weeks later, deputies say

NEVADA COUNTY –  A Sacramento woman authorities were searching for after she went missing from a mining camp near Nevada City last month has been found alive, officials said on Friday.

Esmeralda Marie Pineda, 24, was last seen on the morning of Aug. 26 at a mining camp near the middle fork of the Yuba River and Sweetland Creek in Nevada City.

Nearly two weeks later, the sheriff's office said she was located alive but was "severely dehydrated and emaciated." She was located on the canyon's rim near the Yuba River and Sweetland Creek.

Sgt, Dustin Moe with the Nevada County Sheriff's Office said Pineda was lying under a structure in a small clearing and search crews only noticed her when she sat up and looked in their direction.

"She had a difficult time talking, so we didn't want to pressure her into talking and we didn't want her to excerpt any unneeded energy that she had left," Sgt. Moe said.

According to the sheriff's office, the day she was last seen, Pineda left her campsite intending to return to Sacramento but never made it to the trailhead.

Deputies said she required medical attention and was life-flighted to the hospital. The extent of her injuries and condition is unknown.