He escaped before the Apocalypse, just like in The Eyes Of The Dragon.
Sorry for the necro-bump, but this is the first DT-related thread that I've come across in the past two years.
Just found it.
^__^
-good times, G.J.P. (Jr.)
P.S. I agree with the idea that King is on the downward arc of his literary career. The sole exception being the final volumes of the DT series, which I think have served as the capstone of his life as a novelist.
Don't know if you've made it through Part VI yet, but I thought this was an interesting thread, if you have.