On January 18, 2023, firefighters pulled Lyndsey Kennedy from a storm drain, the same woman authorities had rescued from similar underground tunnels twice before. The incident puzzled first responders, who recognized her from previous encounters.
Kennedy’s first high-profile rescue came in March 2021, when those close to her reported her missing. Investigators discovered her naked and trapped inside a storm drain near Atlantic Avenue in Delray Beach, Florida.
According to police, she told them she had gone swimming in a canal near her boyfriend’s home and followed a tunnel until she became lost in the maze-like system. She survived on whatever water she could find and a single can of ginger ale she carried with her.
The Texas storm drain incident
harness to get her out. The woman, identified as Lyndsey Jane Kennedy, appeared to have minor injuries. Firefighter-paramedics cared for her on scene and transported her to the hospital for further evaluation. In March 2021, Kennedy was also rescued from a storm drain by DBFR. pic.twitter.com/zb4AsZHZ1D
— Delray Beach Police (@DelrayBeachPD) January 18, 2023
That rescue made national headlines, but it wouldn’t be the last. Just two months later, in May 2021, concerned loved ones again reported Kennedy missing, this time in Grand Prairie, Texas. According to police and her family, she had fled from officers and entered another storm drain system. Using a cellphone tracking app, relatives and rescuers were able to trace her movements underground, dropping food and Gatorade through manholes until they found her. First responders eventually pulled Kennedy to safety after being below ground for about three days.
Then in January 2023, Kennedy’s name became news again amid reports she acted erratically near a canal in Delray Beach. Witnesses told police that she climbed into a storm drain pipe and refused to come out. Firefighters worked for nearly an hour to contain her between two sections of pipe before using a ladder and rescue harness to bring her back to the surface. She was transported to a local hospital with minor injuries. The Delray Beach Police Department later confirmed that Kennedy was the same woman involved in the 2021 rescues.
Officials never indicated criminal intent or foul play in any of the cases, but they acknowledged that Kennedy may be struggling with mental health challenges and substance abuse. Her mother told reporters in 2021 that her daughter had been “dealing with some personal issues” and needed professional help. Family members said they had urged her to stay on medication and avoid disappearing into dangerous places.
Kennedy has not faced any criminal charges related to her rescues, and her current condition remains unclear. A separate incident involving Kennedy occurred in July 2021 when she was arrested for a hit-and-run. This arrest took place just a few months after her first two high-profile storm drain rescues in Florida and Texas. What remains certain is that Kennedy survived these precarious circumstances three times over, in the most unlikely of places.
