Newspaper carrier saves life of elderly woman found laying in snow

KENOSHA (WITI) -- The brutal wind and cold in the early morning hours of New Year's Day brought first responders to 61st St. and 43rd Ave. in Kenosha. While delivering the Kenosha News around 4:30 a.m. on New Year's Day -- January 1st, Ralph Sustaita discovered an elderly woman lying in the snow -- and that's when Sustaita jumped into action.

Sustaita says he was alerted to the woman when he heard her voice.

"Just to hear the sound of the voice -- it was just unreal. It was very cold, very windy. Her hands were real red. Her gloves were laying far from her," Sustaita said.

Police believe the woman, who is in her 80s, lived nearby and went out for a walk. Authorities say she may have been there for up to two hours.

"She was lost. She was really confused," Sustaita said.

Had Sustaita not made the discovery he did -- the woman could have easily died.

"I just like, jumped into action, you know -- like it was my own grandmother laying there," Sustaita said.

Sustaita wrapped a jacket around the freezing woman, and called 911. The woman was taken to the hospital for treatment.

"I think it was from the grace of the Lord that I was in the right place at the right time," Sustaita said.

The Kenosha News is reporting the woman was treated for hypothermia and frostbite and appears to be recovering.