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The search and resuce folks were quite heroic, and it does no good to tear down their efforts.

I don't think that any of mine or surfer's comments are meant to take away from the efforts of the men in the field.

The problem, as he has said, is within the command levels.

Sort of like the wire phone company. The linemen are the hardest working people and relate to their customers.

The people above them appear to have as their life's work the goal of making every one mad.

The guys on the poles still do a great job.

There are other examples.

In this case, the people on the ground did really well, but most of those operations are quasi-military in organizational structure and if your superior tells you you will search a given area, that is what you do.

So it is a management problem.

Thank WB...I think we get taken off into specific directions on the thread and the bigger picture is muddled.

You are very right.

One of the things that keeps bothering me...

Everyone seems to know how bad this route is.
Everyone seems to know you shouldn't do what the Kim's

However I know of three similar situations in this specific area where in two of cases fatalities occurred because of the time it took to search "roads".

Why aren't the maps absolutely clear?

Why isn't it part of the training of every hotel in the area to discuss the issue during the winter with people that make reservations - especially for a guest that has never stayed there before.

Why don't the gas stations all put up signs with a specific warning about the roads?

Why after 11 years of situations in this area that I know of this could possible still be a problem?

Why aren't the vandals dealt with properly?

I have heard the county is very poor in regards to Federal funding, etc...

But something really needs to be done to help others. There is a family without a father this Christmas because they made a wrong turn down a road that should have never happened.

I misspoke a couple of posts back.

The SAR team had a 100% success rate over the last four years, with over 80 successful rescues a year, not 80 over four years.

These statistics indicate to me that the structure is working quite well, including those in the command levels. Of course things could have been done better with this search, but how were they to know at the time? They were following protocols which had brought complete success over the last four years. I can see why they didn't want to mess with the model.

Which is what makes Mr. Kim's death all that more tragic. I simply hope that he rests peacefully now, knowing his family is safe.