Woman, 77, Is Impaled on Fence

A 77-year-old woman who has Alzheimer’s disease was impaled on a three-foot fence after tripping on a walkway Tuesday afternoon, authorities said.

Katherine Griner was found by a resident of the 7000 block of Petit Avenue with a wrought-iron post driven underneath her chin and protruding from her mouth, said Lt. Don Farrell of the Los Angeles Police Department.

“She had lost a lot of blood as if she had been there for a while,” said Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman Brian Humphrey.

Firefighters used a hydraulic rescue tool to cut her from the fence. They took her to a hospital with the post still attached, Humphrey said.

Griner had been reported missing at 3:20 p.m. by her husband when he noticed she was not in their home in the 17100 block of Enadia Way, seven blocks from where she was found by the resident at 4:25 p.m, Farrell said.

Griner was listed in serious but stable condition at Northridge Hospital Medical Center, Farrell said.