Geraldine 'Gerry' Palmer, a week shy of 90, holds the ax that she used to break the glass of her sliding door. She had gone onto her snow- covered patio, but the door locked behind her, forcing her to use the ax to escape the cold and snow. (AP Photo/The Durango Herald, Jerry McBride)
DURANGO, Colorado (AP), February 12, 2008:
An 89-year-old woman used an ax to break into her own home after she locked herself out on a patio hemmed in by deep snow. "I had to bang the glass four times with the ax before it broke," said Geraldine "Gerry" Palmer, who turns 90 this weekend.
Palmer said a sliding glass door locked behind her Saturday after she went outside to rearrange some things that had gotten wet on the patio. Snow sliding off the patio roof had formed a pile about 7 feet high between her and the yard, so she had no escape.
About 6 feet of snow has fallen on Durango this winter, the National Weather Service said.
"The ax was there for several years to chop wood, but I no longer use a wood stove," Palmer said.
Copyright © 2008 The Associated Press.
