I saw a news conference yesterday where the local sheriff said that Mrs. Kim has stated that when they missed the turn off for the state highway, they consulted a paper map that showed the Forrest service road. In addition there are signs posted at the start of the road, stating it is closed in the winter.
A tragedy either way. My condolences to Mrs. Kim.
Tech-savvy or not, it seemed he didn’t even have anything as simple as a printed map.
And hindsight is always 20/20, but I wonder why he moved forward into unknown territory rather than retrace steps where he was SURE of what existed. Maybe going back seemed too far, and he took a gamble that something was up ahead, close by.
Wasn’t there another case, also in the northwest US, in the last decade or so, with remarkable similarities? (No, not the one linked to previously where the family was found.) I can’t remember enough details to search for it, but I believe it was a lone salesman looking for a shortcut home who took a wrong turn onto a road that wasn’t kept open in the winter. He got stuck, and the road was closed behind him without a check by the sheriff to see if anyone was using it. He kept a diary, but wasn’t found in time, either. Anybody remember this story?
My question is – when going for help, why didn’t he take the road? Apparently he was found in an extremely inaccessible place that the rescuers had a hard time getting to.
Look up one post.
Yes, I see that, but he seemed to have ignored the map after first becoming stuck, and didn’t seem to take it with him. Wouldn’t you use a map to see first where the nearest human civilization is likely to be?
Another strange action taken at that juncture. Wouldn’t the signs be a warning that you are entering into a dangerous winter wilderness?
Yep. A couple years ago I was interviewed on The ScreenSavers by Leo, and spent the day wandering the TechTV offices. I ran into James Kim in a breakroom or something. I exchanged about 3 words with him, but he was very friendly and outgoing.
Sad to see him go like this.
I followed this story from the moment it broke - and while I pretty much expected this, it was still heartbreaking. I do want people to understand something, though - recall that they had very limited supplies and that Kati Kim resorted to breastfeeding both of her children (7 months old and 4 years old), after they’d given the kids most of the food they had. Have you ever gone several days without the right amount of food? I have - and I would hazard a guess that James Kim was probably a little lightheaded and not making much sense, even to himself. When your mental processes are slowed by the lack of proper nutrients, things like leaving the safety of your car and not taking a map with you make sense. Take into consideration also that he was a slight guy with very little body fat on him - very little insulation and very little in reserve for cases like this.
IMO, the cause of death was probably a mix of general exposure, hypothermia, and starvation. Bad way to go, but I think there are probably worse.
I don’t want to read about any of the awsome Dopers on this board going the same way - James Kim was an intelligent guy and he got done in, so that doesn’t make any of us any less vulnerable. When the story that his body had been found broke, I got a deluge of calls here at the paper to confirm - and to see if the paper could publish something about how to prevent a situation like this from occuring, or what to do in a situation. I put something together for our Q&A section and I’d like to link to it here - please, everyone take this advice, from reputable sources, seriously. Yours is one obituary I don’t want to write.
http://www.gun-slinger.net/kim_q_a.pdf
~Tasha
They said on the morning news that there were bear prints behind him, so perhaps he left the road to avoid the bear.
I was touched by this story, and apparently so was the undersheriff who reported that his body had been found. The undersheriff had to step away in the middle of the statement.
Well since it was reported that they had burned the car tires for warmth, I am guessing that the map was ashes by the time he set out.
An aside, just how do you light a tire on fire, if you are out of gas? They are not terribly flammable.
Looking at the Google Earth info here: Layout Scene - Hub for Designers can anyone figure out the route they took to end up there in the first place?
If you look at a road map, state route 42 (?) is the turn off that they missed. That road would have brought them to the coast north of their destination. The road they did take was almost due east of their destination, and probably looked like a good alternative.
The next suitable road after 42 is NF23/33. I had originally assumed that is the route they had taken, east to west… I can’t figure out how they ended up where they did. IOW, they couldn’t have approached where they were from the north. The road is cut off from the north.
If they HAD taken 23/33, how on earth did they end up where they did if they had a map which they did.
I feel so sorry for the man, dying without ever knowing if his wife and children would survive.
That said, they made some seriously poor choices. They shouldn’t have taken that turn-off to begin with, being unfamiliar with the condition of the road especially in late November when the roads get wet, muddy, icy and/or snowbound. They should have turned around and gone back the way they came rather than stopping for the night. He should have stayed with the car, especially after a week of no food and probably little sleep as well as a lower body temperature. He should have stayed on the road after he left the car.
The whole thing is a senseless tragedy. I knew when they didn’t find him within 24 hours of finding the family that he would be dead by the time they found him. It’s amazing he lasted as long as he did.
All these questions are answered in the news articles. Check out sfgate. Basically, the family missed an exit, then later made a wrong turn, followed by a decision to stay in the car for the night. Unfortunately, snow fell overnight and locked them in. They waited for rescue, but when nothing came after a week, the dad, James, hiked back down the road from whence they drove to find help. The wife and kids were rescued two days later, but James didn’t make it. IMO, James did the right thing. With hindsight, some say he should’ve waited, but in today’s paper there was an account of someone who did just that, and he was found dead nine weeks later! This is a story that touches a lot of people … after all, who hasn’t gotten lost while on a road trip and what father wouldn’t do whatever it would take to save his family?
See, now, this is where I’m going to have to disagree. If I were in his shoes, I probably would’ve done the same thing- remember, he’d been there a week, watching his wife and daughters slowly freeze and starve to death. While he probably thought that people were looking for them, he didn’t know if anyone was looking in the right area. After a week, I probably would’ve given up hope.
I think trying to walk out was the smartest, bravest thing for him to do. That it didn’t work, or that it ultimately wasn’t necessary, doesn’t diminish the act.
My point (again) is that given the map in the link above and the fact that they HAD a map, how did they stray so far (in the car now) from 23. They were going north and no map that I have found shows ANY way out of there - at least in the direction they were heading.
Very sad. There was a fishing lodge about 4000ft from the car. Would have provided shelter and it was checked twice by searchers.
his foot prints were spotted by a pilot. that led to the rescue of his family.
his trying to find help, did bring help to them. unfortunatly they were not able to get to him in time. he really did book though difficult terrain. it is amazing he got as far as he did.
I have to agree, he appears to have tried to stay w/ the car, but finally concluded that it wasn’t going to work. Being from northern Ca., he may have been familiar w/ the several roads connecting I-5 w/ the 101, winding two lanes, but no real danger. I’ve driven secondary roads in southern Oregon and they can be deceptive, starting out as a reasonable road and soon you’re in the wilderness w/ no human habitation. His wife says that they first attempted to all go together, but soon realized that it was too much w/ the children. That’s when he decided to go alone. The weather, in the area, was fairly mild when they took the cutoff, but changed rapidly. I think he concluded that he had to act to save his family. There is some irony, if he had gone the other direction he would have found a small lodge about 3 miles away… It was uninhabited w/ no phone, but he could have broken in and brought his family there for shelter and warmth, there may very well have been some food. The road he was on doubles back down the other side of a narrow canyon, he may have tried to save time by cutting across the canyon to reach the road on the other side.
His mistakes: Taking the shortcut, but that may be understandable. Not having food and warter in the car, that’s a biggie to me. Firewood is plentiful, even in the rain or snow, I’m a bit surprised he didn’t discover this?
He’s a brave guy who did what he believed he had to do. If some lessons are learned it will only be a good thing.
A terrible tragedy, and I think that we need to remember how difficult nature can be.
As a child, my parents made us carry around survival kits when we hiking in the woods. While I used to think it was silly, I think I’ll make my kids do it (when I have them).