A 71-year-old woman from Cascade died after her SUV drove into a ditch off of U.S. Highway 24 Monday night, according to the Colorado State Patrol. She was found dead inside her vehicle early Tuesday.
Troopers suspect Hilda Correa may have been under the influence of prescription drugs, or possibly fell asleep at the wheel when her 1997 Honda CR-V swerved off the right side of the highway and fell into a ditch about five miles west of Manitou Springs.
Correa was reported missing about 10 p.m. Monday night when she went to pick up a relative in Colorado Springs but never arrived. A state patrol trooper drove her route several times before he spotted faint tire marks on the side of the highway just after 7 a.m. Tuesday morning, said Sgt. Justin Mullins, a state patrol spokesman.
He found her vehicle landed on its roof in the 15-foot ditch with Correa’s body still inside.The vehicle could not be seen from the highway.
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