Lewiston teacher spends 2 nights in woods

ANDOVER – A Lewiston High School teacher who got lost in a snowstorm while hiking alone on the Appalachian Trail last weekend was rescued after spending two cold nights in the woods.

Patricia Spilecki, 41, of Sabattus was spotted Tuesday evening by a Maine Warden Service pilot.

Spilecki had only a jacket, hat, hiking pants and hiking sneakers when the snow started falling Sunday and she lost the trail, Warden David Chabot said. Her only food was a box of raisins.

The snow was about 4 inches deep Tuesday from a storm that began Sunday and continued through Monday afternoon with sleet, freezing rain and rain.

Spilecki was reported missing Monday when she failed to show up for work at the high school. Sabattus police began an investigation Monday night and contacted the Warden Service on Tuesday.

Wardens found her car parked at a trailhead and the search began in earnest at 4:30 p.m. Tuesday. Less than two hours later, Spilecki had been spotted by the warden pilot.

“Wardens did a heck of a job,” said Warden Sgt. Don Gray. “It worked out good, and that’s the way we like it.”