Fumbles, missteps hindered search. On a hunch, local pilot found mother, kids alive.

San Francisco Chronicle ^ | 12/10/2006 | Jaxon Van Derbeken, Peter Fimrite

[surfer]

For four days, as the snowbound Kim family's food supplies dwindled and they used up their gas running their stranded car's heater, no one even knew they were missing.

It was two more days before rescuers narrowed the search to roads leading across thousands of square miles of western Oregon, and another day before cell phone transmissions helped to pinpoint the search area.

While the speed of the investigation in some ways was remarkable -- given what little authorities started out with -- it was dogged by early missteps and obstacles that handicapped investigators.

A Portland hotel where the family had stayed refused to provide credit card records that might have indicated which way the Kims had gone. An early search by air and land of the treacherous mountain route that James and Kati Kim drove out of Grants Pass yielded nothing.

The owner of a lodge on the road where the Kims' car was stuck had told authorities three days before Kati Kim and her daughters were found that he had seen tire tracks in the snow, but he hadn't been able to follow them in his snowmobile once he hit bare ground. No one followed up.

...

[Rte66]

The #1 consideration here that has been overlooked is that it isn't against the law for adults to "go missing." It's also standard for LE not to get involved before 24 hours has passed.

[Mjaye]

If they average 80 per year in that area, they could be spending probably 1/4 that many millions a year depending on how may choppers and other sophisticated equipment is used as well as how many men. <<<<<<<<<<

Exactly! And I'm sure those signs are operated remotely by computer. The one on my road was at the entrance to the road, and anyone not familiar with the area would have probably gone down the block to the truck stop/travel center (open 24/7) for alternate directions. I'm not saying we have to pamper motorists by having signs everywhere, but for a road that is misleading on maps and computerized mapping services, it would sure save on SAR ops.

[woodbutcher]

My number was hasty.

Obviously not every SAR is for someone who took the wrong turn in a snow storm.

Plane crashes, people falling out of boats, the kid that wanders away from camp, the older person whose mind is not so good anymore...all are subjects for SAR.

But just two or three massive searches like this one a year amount to big bucks.

I tried to look up the Oregon budget for SAR and the reports I found were too difficult to work through although anyone with the patience could find out about anything he wanted to know.

They have SAR broken down by county, type of event, sex of missing person, on and on and on.

By resident county of lost person.

And by the month of the year.

So you would have to find that county, look at the winter months, look for the type of search and total a zillion numbers. I am not that interested.

However, one number that jumped out at me and I may not have looked carefully enough, but it appears that only 4 or 5% of searches are for out of state people.

So it looks like that those on this thread who have ranted about the dummies that drive up from CA that have no brains about survival and get lost, etc, are not really as much a problem as those savvy survivalists that live in OR.

Really funny, if I read the numbers correctly.

[Iconoclast2]

The same way it's possible that the only people who actually resisted the 9/11 hijackers were ordinary citizens. We live in a media cocoon generally insulated from the awful reality of utter government incompetence.

[surfer]

Bray once again...

I don't think anybody said James WASN'T at fault. Yeah he messed up and messed up real good. He paid for his mistake.

Now there are professional people that get paid for what they do...and yes they made some pretty startling mistakes as well - I think they should pay for their mistakes. One particular mistake - if accurate - if not had been made - they probably would have been found on Saturday - and we all be high-fiving everyone.

[surfer]

amen to that...someone I know his son was on that flight and his son will always be a hero in our family.

[Irish Eyes]

This is wrong he did not tell the authorities that he had cleared the road.

Why are you posting this to me?? I refuted it!!!

Sorry paulat, did not realize that you were refuting this statement. Should have made the reply to nyconse

[abner]

Marking for later.

[bray]

Typical Katrina way of looking at life. Being a native Oregonian I know that any time I am in the wilderness I am on my own and in his case his family depended on him.

Rather than blaming the SAR who risked their lives to save this family how bout looking at his main mistakes. He should have never left the freeway in a major winter storm. He may not have been able to cross hwy 42 in that storm which dropped 6' of snow in the Cascades so likely 1-3 feet in the Coast Range.

When he was stuck he should have stayed with the car and used it as a shelter. He could have built a lean-to shelter and most of all should have built a fire. With a fire he could have easily survived a week with any food at all.

Rather he made the fateful mistake of trying to walk out of a mountain range that is next to impossible to cross. If you do walk out always walk downhill and follow the river to safety. He walked a 16 mile circle on the logging roads.

When you are in the wilderness you better know some simple survival skills or you may not make it.

But none of that matters in a post Katrina world, its the gummit's fault.

Pray for W and Our Troops

[woodbutcher]

When he was stuck he should have stayed with the car and used it as a shelter. He could have built a lean-to shelter and most of all should have built a fire. With a fire he could have easily survived a week with any food at all.

---

Hooray!!!

Captain Obious to the rescue!

Dear Captain:

You missed a couple of points, but no matter. You have as ususal solved the problem.

First, no one has bad mouthed the men on the ground. Or in the choppers.

The problem was with the 911 operator who totally ignored the only really valid clue, unless there were others that were not reported.

One could also criticize the chain of command for allowing a person of such limited judgement to be at a critical station.

As for following logging trails in a circle, again you are uninformed. I read that reports from the people that tracked him were to the effect that he had traversed terain so steep and so rough that they had to use climbing gear to traverse some of the same ground safely.

The bottom line still is that if the woman, whose name escapes me at the moment, had done her job or if the guy who saw the tracks had been more agressive and ranted until someone followed the tire tracks, the outcome would have been different.

[surfer]

Sara Rubrecht, the emergency services coordinator with neighboring Josephine County is the person in question I believe.

Don't know how you do it WB...I just couldn't muster the energy to once again post a response to Bray - like a bad nickle that keeps coming back.

Bray do you think we are winning in Iraq as well?

[r9etb]

The most fundamental mistake the Kim's made was relying on local LE to ensure their safety.

No, the most fundamental mistake they made was in leaving main roads at night during a snowstorm while driving in the mountains.

You cannot blame the Kim's for making mistakes based on bad information - it happens to all of us on a daily basis.

I understand their mistakes, having made similar ones myself. But they should never have turned off the highway. Folks not used to mountains and snow tend not to understand how treacherous it can be.

[TruthWillWin]

He may not have been able to cross hwy 42 in that storm which dropped 6' of snow in the Cascades so likely 1-3 feet in the Coast Range.

He was going to Gold Beach and from Portland or Roseburg you have to leave the freeway. 42 would have been the best way to get there from Roseburg. Very rare for one to find snow on 42 and very common for it to snow on the route he attempted.

[r9etb]

So it might be assumed that James saw the creek area and thought either it was Rogue River or was going to lead to it. An old survival tatic used to be to follow rivers because they ultimately alway led to a town. There are many theories on this now.

Another mistake. It sounds swell to "follow a stream," but stream banks are often impassable even during good weather. It killed James Kim.

[bray]

Why yes we are winning in Iraq and sometimes change is messy what does that have to do with this?? Trying to impress your thuggish buddies here with your all knowing armchair abilities? Do you believe everything Neville Baker and the DNC says??

Fact is he should have stayed with the car and died because he didn't. Apparently he wasn't Captain Obvious! Course you don't have 750 sq mile rugged wilderness or snow w/your hurricanes in Florida.

Ass for now backing away from blaming the SAR, perhaps you should read the posts I responded to that directly blamed the SAR. You were the main SAR blamer now it is some 911 operator, nice crabwalk.

Bottom line if you go up into the wilderness in Oregon you better know what you're doing because you are on your own, period. The same thing could have happened to me or any number of hunters/fisherman from here and could have survived a week or more up there fairly easily. All you need is a fire and there is a forest of dry wood even in a blizzard. Course we wouldn't be up there with our families anyway.

Calling me names or pointing fingers hardly solves anything other than hiding your limited knowledge of the area. Course nobody can question you or your motives.

As for the hwy 42 slammer, he was coming from Portland to Gold Beach which would take him across 42. Since I lived on 42 for 3 years I may know what I am talking about snow up there or is this thread for flatlander armchair QBs who have never been there? He missed the cutoff and tried to cross that logging road rather than backtracking 30 miles to 42 and it cost him his life. You will save more lives pointing that out than blaming the SAR or 911 operator.

Ass for following the river, yes it is very steep ground around there which was exactly my point. However if he could have got down to the stream it would have led him to the Rogue which has a well maintained trail and houses w/in 15 miles. But hey what do I know, I just lived down there I don't have the benefit of the internet. Anybody knows to follow the rivers downhill when lost.

If the tire tracks were so well marked why didn't he follow them out? The map in the Boregonian showed a big circle where he walked 16 miles and ended up 2 miles from the car on another road.

Now respond w/o your cheap namecalling if you can??????? Ever been in the Oregon Coast Range?

Pray for W and Our Troops

[skyman]

I understand what you are saying and do agree.

We also need to be prepared any time we drive on long trips and away from our familiar surroundings and use extra caution, carry survival supplies, etc.

[surfer]

Bray SAR did mess up...big time. And she isn't a 911 operator...once again you don't dig into the details and you spew your comments. The woman is the emergency services coordinator for Josephine County. She was dispatched and actually onsite and part of the SAR efforts. If the information that has been reported is accurate on what she did...then she definitely hindered and hurt this effort and most likely contributed to the tragic outcome.

Bray you really need to get your facts straight.

As far as my knowledge of the wilderness I am very experienced and am familiar with the area. Just because I live in paradise now doesn't mean I always lived here - once again another bad assumption on your part - taking limited knowledge and spewing more garbage.

Bray people like you really take away from the value of FR.

And for the record I do not agree with or listen to anything the DNC has to say.

If you think we are winning in Iraq then you must be an ostrich. Before anyone jumps on me - I didn't say we couldn't win...but we are not winning right now...it is obvious. We cannot fight a way in the mamby pamby way we are doing it. But that is for another thread.

[bray]

So when did Robinson die and make you the determinate of who's opinion is valued on this site. Perhaps you should have me censored along with the poster right above yours who is saying the exact same thing.

Your nitpicking the "dispatcher" serves no purpose. My apologies if you have been in that area before, where did you go?

Pray for W and Our Troops

[surfer]

Bray,

Mine point (re: nitpicking) about the dispatcher is that you read something - make a rash assessment and then deliver your response without thinking and realizing what you are saying.

There is a big difference between a 911 operation (who sits in a nice warm control center) and someone who is responsible for coordinating SAR efforts on the ground - she was actually on Bear Camp Rd was told about very strong evidence that tire tracks went up the road toward Black Bar Lodge and that IT DEFINITELY needed to be checked out.

She either dismissed the account, ignored, or forgot the information and then told the searchers that the area had already been cleared and didn't need to be searched!!! That happened on Friday. Since the searchers thought the area had been cleared they didn't search that area - it wasn't until late Saturday when a volunteer from Edge wireless found the ping to their cellphones from the previous week and their efforts then moved back into that area on Sunday.

To me that is a major, inexcusable mistake for a paid professional to make.

I have been on 23 (not in the winter) but not on Bear Camp Rd. I have hiked and camped in the Cascades (WA state) including the winter.

[surfer]

Suggestion...if you want to put your own two cents in...read the other 98 cents and give people the respect they deserve for putting so much time and effort into this.

Some of us have been posting since the very beginning of this and as always on FR...things get figured out - good or bad - and they need to be reviewed and corrected so the sames mistakes are not made again.

That is the beauty of FR that pieces of puzzle get assembled from all kinds of people and things actually get solved and improvements can happen because of that.