Lost Dad Found Dead in Wilderness

[MHandMB 0]

http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/12/06/missing.family/index.html

MERLIN, Oregon (CNN) -- The body of a San Francisco man who had walked into the Oregon wilderness to summon help for his stranded family was found Wednesday in a steep ravine where he had left clues for searchers.

Officials confirmed that James Kim, 35, an editor at the Web site CNET, had been found dead.

Brian Anderson, Undersheriff of Josephine County, broke down and could not finish speaking as he announced that Kim's body was found at 3:03 p.m. ET.

Searchers were attempting to remove Kim's body, and his family members have requested that their privacy be respected, officials said.

Kim walked into the snowy Oregon mountains Saturday to find help for his wife and two young daughters. They were rescued by searchers on Monday.

Clothing and bits of an Oregon map turned up Tuesday in a steep canyon that drains into the Rogue River. Searchers said they believed he was marking his trail for them.

The clothing, which was wet, included two gray sweat shirts, a red T-shirt, a sock and a blue girl's skirt, said Lt. Gregg Hastings of the Oregon State Patrol. Family members said Kim carried the items when he left.

"They were laid out in a well defined area, in a pattern," Hastings said. The pattern led officers to believe that "little signs are being left by James."

Fog hampers search

Searchers also found a pair of gray pants they believed belonged to Kim. The family said he was wearing the pants over blue jeans when he left.

Teams were trying to resume their search Wednesday, but were hampered by fog which they hoped would lift by midday.

Searchers planned to drop 18 numbered rescue packages containing clothing, emergency gear and other survival provisions into the area Wednesday in hopes that Kim could find one. The packages, clear plastic bags the size of pillows, also contained a note from his family.

Searchers said the packages would be dropped in a 3-square-mile area where "hot spots" showed up two nights earlier in thermal imaging.

"This is frustrating. We are so close," Anderson said. "There are people pouring their heart and soul into this. We are not going to quit until we find him."

Temperatures at night in the search area have been dipping below freezing in lower elevations. The weather is expected to deteriorate by Friday.

Dramatic rescue on Monday

Kim's wife, Kati, and two daughters were rescued at their car, stuck in the snow on a remote road.

When he left the car Saturday, James Kim went about two miles along the road, and then headed down into the drainage area, said Lt. Gregg Hastings of the Oregon State Police.

About 100 rescue workers and four helicopters were searching for Kim, following his footprints down a drainage called Big Windy Creek that leads to the Rogue River.

Anderson said he does not know why Kim went into the drainage area. "I hope to have the opportunity to ask why he did that," he said.

Kim, a senior editor for the technology media company CNET Networks Inc., had two lighters and was wearing tennis shoes, pants and a heavy coat, but no hat, Anderson said. He would likely be within about five miles of the car, he said.

The Kims had been missing since November 25, when they left Portland and headed home after a holiday trip to the Pacific Northwest.

Kati Kim told officers they were traveling south from Portland on Interstate 5 and missed the turnoff to a state highway, Oregon 42, that leads through the Coast Range to Gold Beach, where they planned to stay at a resort.

Questions about map

Officers said the couple used a map to choose the road they were on. "They got the map out -- a regular highway map -- that showed the route," Anderson said.

However, it wasn't clear whose map the couple used. The 2005-2007 state highway map distributed by the Oregon Department of Transportation has a warning in red print, inside a red box: "This route closed in winter." A Rand-McNally map did not have a similar warning.

On Monday, searchers in a private helicopter hired by the family spotted Kati Kim, 30, and daughters Penelope, 4, and Sabine, 7 months. They were released from a hospital in Grants Pass on Tuesday.

After leaving Portland on Interstate 5, search leaders said, the couple missed a turnoff that leads to the coast and took a wrong turn on a twisty mountain road they chose as an alternative.

Stuck, they used their car heater until they ran out of gas then burned tires to stay warm and attract attention. With only a few jars of baby food and limited supplies, Kati Kim nursed her children.

The area's complicated road network is commonly used by whitewater rafters on the Rogue River or as a shortcut to the coast in the summer, but it is not plowed in the winter.

Edited December 6, 2006 by MHandMB

[CarolineM 0]

[MaryandMian 1]

Such sad news and I had been hoping for a miracle.

[AnaAndDaniel 0]

that is sad.

Daniel

:energetic:

[no name 1]

Such sad news and I had been hoping for a miracle.

I'd say finding the mom & daughters alive after 9 days is a miracle though....

[Kez/JWolf 6]

Oh such sad news.... his poor wife and kids... just so sad..

[MaryandMian 1]

Such sad news and I had been hoping for a miracle.

I'd say finding the mom & daughters alive after 9 days is a miracle though....

I agree but I had held out a glimmer of hope that they would find him and return him to his family.

[no name 1]

Such sad news and I had been hoping for a miracle.

I'd say finding the mom & daughters alive after 9 days is a miracle though....

I agree but I had held out a glimmer of hope that they would find him and return him to his family.

Yeah. I gave up when they found the mom - he spent those extra 2 days in the open air by then...and he had promised to return Saturday at 1PM.

Edited December 6, 2006 by devilette

[Canuck Carrie 1]

I agree but I had held out a glimmer of hope that they would find him and return him to his family.

Me too.

So joyous and sad all at the same time. I hope the media respects their wishes to be left alone.

[irishgirl73 0]

I thought there might be a sad ending to the story..............but I was really hoping he would be found alive.

It IS a miracle that his family survived

[StarProg 0]

So so sad, but I expected that was coming. It was taking too long to find the dad, and he wouldn't have been hiding.

[MichelleandCraig 1]

Was really hoping for a happy ending too...agree with the others..glad his family is safe, but so sad. M.

[heishe 2]

I hope we've all learned something from this.

[Mary Lou 681]

I was hoping as well when they found those pants it was going to be a good sign, like he was leaving a trail. So sad

[KiKi 0]

Really sad

I wish he had just stayed put.......