Christmas Eve did not end well for a Willow woman who Alaska State Troopers said summoned them with a report another woman had been kidnapped from her home about 75 miles north of Anchorage.
Troopers reported 60-year-old Dona Carnahan "was hysterical on the phone" when she called 911. Troopers from Talkeetna, the nearest community, rushed to her residence only to have have Carnahan flee upon their arrival. It went downhill from there.
Carnahan proceeded to lead troopers on a two-mile chase until "she spun her vehicle around in an intersection and intentionally rammed the Trooper vehicle head on," a trooper dispatch said.
Both vehicles were smashed. The trooper involved was not injured, but Carnahan was, sustaining minor injuries, the dispatch said. Taken into custody after the collision, she was also found to have been drinking and in possession of a shotgun, which led to a variety of charges against her, according to troopers.
Carnahan was taken to the Mat-Su Pretrial facility, where she'll likely spend Christmas day while troopers continue an investigation to sort out exactly what was going on.
Willow and nearby Talkeetna are small, semi-remote communities north of Alaska's largest city that fill up with people during the long, warm Alaska summer, but can get very cold and lonely in the darkness of the short days of winter.
Contact Craig Medred at craig(at)alaskadispatch.com