California Woman Rescued from Storm Drain Dies Hours Later

Yafang Zhou, 59, was found in a storm drain after being missing for two weeks, but investigators remain uncertain about how she ended up there.

Yafang Zhou, missing since March 25, was rescued from a storm drain in Poway, California, on April 7 but died later that day at Palomar Medical Center.
Emergency crews located Zhou after hearing her voice beneath a manhole cover during a search operation along Beeler Canyon Road.
The rescue involved removing heavy manhole covers and using ropes and pulleys to extract Zhou from approximately 10 feet underground in hazardous conditions.
Authorities have not determined how Zhou entered the storm drain system, with no signs of disturbed manhole covers or clear points of entry nearby.
The case highlights challenges in confined-space rescues and raises unanswered questions about Zhou’s circumstances leading up to her death.