A Washington state woman was stabbed, then buried alive by her estranged husband — but she managed to survive the terrifying ordeal by squirming around the shallow grave for hours to keep the dirt off her face.

A Thurston County sheriff’s deputy responded about 1 a.m. Monday to a home in Lacey, about 60 miles southwest of Seattle, where Young An, 42, banged on the door pleading for help because her husband was trying to kill her, police said in a release.