“She had a heck of a will to live,” is just one of the superlatives Central City Fire Chief Gary Allen used in describing Cindy Hoover.

For more than five days, Hoover survived the elements in the 8,600-foot mountains outside of Central City.

Hoover, 52, of Granby was driving down Central City Parkway on Sept. 10 when a herd of deer appeared on the road.

Hoover swerved, and her 2004 Volkswagen Passat left the road, rolling down a steep hillside and landing on its top.

The car couldn’t be seen from the heavily traveled road used by those driving between Interstate 70 and Central City.

About 3 p.m. Tuesday, people visiting the Hidee Mine, about a mile from Central City, heard Hoover’s cries for help.

Despite multiple injuries, Hoover, clad in blue-jean shorts and a blouse, crawled from the car toward the mine — a distance of about 450 feet.

As she got near the mine, which conducts tours, Hoover could hear people, said Allen.

She timed her yells for help during lapses in the tour conversations.

Finally she was heard.

“She used up three or four miracles,” said Allen. “She survived the crash, she survived the elements and she was heard by people conducting mine tours,” he said.

“What amazed me was she survived the rain, fog, sleet and hail” which descended on the area over the weekend, said Allen. During that period, the temperature was cold, not getting above 45 degrees, said the chief.

Chris Stone, manager of Hidee Gold Mine Tours, said that Hoover’s initial calls were very faint. Employees and visitors thought they heard something but weren’t sure.

After hearing one of the cries for help, Jon Northern, captain of the Colorado Front Range Mine Rescue Team, who also helps conduct the tours, said he ran toward the sound.

Northern spotted Hoover sitting up holding her knees.

“I could see things weren’t right,” said Northern. “She said her car had rolled. She was fixated on my bottle of water.”

Northern said he gave her the bottle. She began gulping water and started choking.

Trained in rescue and realizing that large amounts of water might be harmful, Northern told Hoover to spit the water out.

She refused, shook her head “no,” and downed the water.

Then, after drinking the water, Northern said an amazing thing came from the mouth of such a badly injured woman.

“She apologized for taking such large gulps,” said Northern recalling his disbelief that she felt she had to apologize.

Northern described finding Hoover as a “little bit surreal.”

Both he and the tourist couple from Iowa had thought they had heard the cries for help. When an unmistakable clear cry came, Northern locked eyes with the tourists, and they all agreed they had heard a plea. At that point, Northern ran toward Hoover.

Stone, who was summoned by people touring with Northern, quickly arrived with the Hidee Mine’s first-aid kit.

“She said she had been there since Thursday,” said Stone. “It seemed unbelievable to us. She was really thirsty. She was really dehydrated. She complained about the pain.”

“We got her into the blankets quickly. She said, ‘I’m really glad you guys found me. When is an ambulance going to come?’ ” recalled Stone.

He said Hoover’s face was purple, her mouth covered in dirt. She said everything hurt and especially painful were her bare feet.

Stone said Hoover used half a golf club that was in her car to help her crawl. She also was going to use it to fend off any animals, but none attacked her, said Stone.

Cellphone reception is so bad near the mine that Northern had to climb a mountain ridge to make the 911 call, said Stone. But Central City firefighters responded within minutes of receiving the call, Stone added. He said there was no indication that Hoover had a phone.

Allen said he and six other people from the fire department responded to the mine after they received the emergency call.

Much to everyone’s amazement, Hoover had remained awake and alert during the five-day ordeal.

“She kept repeating ‘It happened Thursday. I’ve been here since Thursday,’ ” said Allen. “She was thirsty and cold.”

Allen said he gave her some water, and paramedics administered pain medication.

That Hoover is a survived is not a surprise to people who know her. She is described as upbeat, outgoing and a very strong woman.

Hoover is one of two Colorado Department of Labor and Employment employees at the state Workforce Center in Granby.

According to Rosemary Pettus, who supervises the department of labor’s northwest region, Hoover has a labor-intensive job. It includes helping people find jobs, posting job openings for employers and holding training sessions and workshops for the unemployed. Among the things she teaches are computer skills and resume writing.

A Flight for Life helicopter landed at the mine within 30 minutes of the initial 911 call and flew her to St. Anthony Central Hospital in Denver.

Officials at the hospital said today that Hoover, a Colorado state employee, is listed in fair condition.

Stone, the manager at the Hidee Gold Mine, is still amazed by Hoover’s endurance: “It is absolutely amazing.”

Howard Pankratz: 303-954-1939 or hpankratz@denverpost.com