Oregon woman has hand and part of arm amputated after it was caught in the hood of her truck

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Joan Zuber, 68, had only intended to be outside last week for a few minutes until a gust of wind slammed the hood of her truck shut
Her hand was trapped and she was forced to stand overnight for 18 hours until being rescued
Her right hand and part of her right arm have been amputated
Decades of hiking and rock climbing around the world likely saved her life

Published: 15:19 EST, 6 February 2014 | Updated: 17:27 EST, 6 February 2014

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An elderly Oregon woman had part of her right arm amputated after a truck hood slammed on it and she was forced to stand 18 hours in snowy weather until being rescued.

Joan Zuber, 68, from rural Molalla, went outside last week to charge her truck’s battery when a gust of wind blew the hood shut – she was forced to stand while enduring falling snow and bitter cold until neighbors rescued her 18 hours later.

Doctors at a local hospital were forced to remove her right hand and part of her arm and said she was lucky to be alive, her family told the New York Daily News.

Tough as nails: Joan Zuber, 68, survived being trapped 18 hours in bitter cold, but doctors amputated her right hand and part of her arm

Her truck: Zuber was attending the battery in this truck, a Ford F150, when a gust of wind blew the hood shut and trapped her hand inside

'Doctors said she probably wouldn't have survived another day ,' daughter Heather Zuber, 37, told the paper.

The avid mountain climber and outdoors aficionado drew upon her decades of mountaineering all over the world to get her through the ordeal - jogging in place and strategically yelling for help in a way that would cut through the dense forest, her daughter explained.

'She really is that tough,' Heather Zuber said. 'With her rock climbing and mountaineering, she's had a lot of training. She probably had plenty of time to think about what she would do if she was found .'

Her mental fortitude got her through a situation that might have claimed the life of a lesser person.

She actually had snow accumulate on her during the ordeal, a firefighter told ABC News.

'Hand trapped, you can’t kneel or sit on the hood, and you are in a standing position for 18 hours. It actually snowed on her throughout the night,’ Molalla Fire Department spokesperson Mike Penunuri told ABC.

‘It took a very strong will to survive that.’

Avid hiker: Zuber spent much of her time outdoors, pictured rock climbing in Nevada, her experience likely saved her life

World traveler: The gritty matriarch, pictured in Italy in 2009, traveled around the world to hike and rock climb

Joan Zuber had worn several layers during what was only intended to be a short trip outside, Mr Penunuri credited those layers with likely saving her life.

‘She was dressed in several layers of clothing, several shirts, outer garments, a vest, a coat, and heavy pants,’ he said.

‘I’ve gone out in jeans and tennis shoes to do something really quick,’ he added. ‘If she had done that, I don’t think she would have survived. The hypothermia would have killed her.’

Temperatures barely stayed above freezing through the night, the woman told rescuers she stayed warm by jogging in place, he added.

She was found around 11 a.m. Thursday after having been outside since 5 p.m. the previous day, according to KPHO.

Neighbor Mary Nunn heard her desperate cries for help while riding horses nearby. They released the hood and immediately called 911.

‘We were out riding our horses today and we heard a lady screaming from across the canyon,’ a lady said during a 911 call made public by KPHO.

Upbeat: Daughter Heather Zuber said her mother remains positive and is 'looking forward to the challenge of learning something new'

‘Just let her know help is on the way,’ the dispatcher can be heard responding.

'She’s kept her cool the whole time so, she’s a very strong lady,' Nunn told KATU.

The gritty woman is now in recovering in the hospital but expected to be released later this week, her daughter said.

Doctors have taken steps including closing nerve endings in order to relieve the pain.

'She's taking it way better than I ever could. I'd probably still be crying,' said the daughter. 'She's looking forward to the challenge of learning something new.'