My partner came in to work today and told me of a guy he knew (yes knew) that had been dispatched to Texas for the flooding. The guy worked in insurance. My partner says that he had 4 days in a row off and decided to go to Vegas. The guy rented a car (Lincoln Towncar) and being the adventerous sort, went for a drive. Ended up getting stuck in the sand 40 miles from Kingman AZ (about 90 miles from Vegas. He left the paved road for his adventerous drive. After getting stuck, he attempted to hike it out...

My partner tells me that this guy always had his cell with him and would have never NOT Answered it. 4 days of calls to it went unanswered.....Through a LONG process....they were able to get in touch with his parents who filed a missing persons report. The police found his body....about 5 miles from his car....and 5 feet from the roadway.

No word yet on what equipment he did or did not have (except that he didn't have his cell phone....that was in his hotel room).

COD (presumptive) was exposure. I'll post more as I get it. The AP had the story. I unfortunately don't have the time to find and post a link.

Sad story. I tried to find an AP story, no luck...

http://tinyurl.com/32sufc

Very sad story, but we seem to have a few of these every year.

<My partner doesn't have much more info except that they think he may haved died on July 4th. Here's the article...it's short.

Bradenton man died in the desert after leaving note
ASSOCIATED PRESS


KINGMAN, Ariz. --A Bradenton man found dead in a remote area of Arizona is believed to have died of heat exposure.

The body of Michael Donovan Holt, 36, was found Saturday, one day after a hunter found his rent car about six miles away.

The Lincoln Town Car was rented to Holt, of Bradenton, in Las Vegas and was found in a remote area about 40 miles southeast of Mesquite, Nev.

An autopsy is pending.

The car had a note attached saying Holt had become stranded and was walking for help, said Trish Carter, a spokeswoman for the Mohave County Sheriff's Office.

Sheriff's search and rescue units found his body.

He left the road, in a Lincoln Towncar?!?

yes he left the road in a lincoln town car.....what's more is that my partner said that this guy is not an idiot either. We're not talking rocket scientist smart...he tells me though that he was common sense smart..... No idea (yet) why he did what he did....

Further update...it seems that he had taken with him the following:1 Gallon H2O, Cell phone, Laptop and a fanny pack with 'salty snacks' (no further on exactly they were) as well as a camera.

The police found a 'journal' as well....maybe a physical written one or it was on the laptop..the family does not have it yet and I presume that some of it will be released....more when I find out.

They say that the lens on his camera was broken....presumably he tried to light a fire with it...he had been a smoker and was NEVER without a lighter....until now.....

LOL. Rental contracts stipulate that you don't take them off-road (just rented last week).

I agree with you about desert roads (I grew up in SoCal, after all, so I've been to quite a few SW deserts). But, c'mon, it's in the car's name! TOWN and CAR. Nothing about desert, SUV, off-road, truck, 4-wheel drive.

From this thread up to this point, it seems like the guy was at least thinking ahead (packing water, etc), and just made a really dumb choice about his vehicle. It's kind of a shame in that respect.

Edit: I don't recall the article mentioning the Mojave. He was in Arizona, and I'm not sure which desert is in that area.

"...He was in Arizona, and I'm not sure what desert is in that area..."

The Mojave Desert covers part of AZ, as well as NV and UT, in addition to CA...

Yep. Its the Mojave. Lower elevation than the Sonora. IIRC, less rainfall, fewer streams, less groundwater sources and higher average temperatures. Not the kind of place for a spur-of-the-moment cross country detour in July.

This is a really tragic story, and I've enjoyed the comments that have been posted. Does anybody have any ideas about what he could have done to survive this situation given the supplies he had?

Good to know. I get confused with all the different areas: Death Valley, Mojave, Joshua Tree, etc. In fact, I may just be splitting hairs and they're all part of the same desert.

Probably the only thing that I would have done would be to hole up during the day and hike at night (If at all). There's probably some scrub brush, so there's probably a minimal amount of shade. If he had a way to dig, maybe stop an hour or 2 before sunrise and dry and dig a shallow ditch to get to a bit cooler dirt. Otherwise, I'd pretty much avoid any desert survival situation!

Yup. Interesting place in the winter, miserable in the summer...

I spent four months at the Mojave National Preserve last year (in the winter). Other than the occasional snow storm, finding ground water was next to impossible. We spent days and days prowling around in a 4WD, never did see any natural water. Much worse in the summer...

"...above average in your botany..."

THAT'S why I didn't notice it! I am far below average when it comes to botany...

Yup. I had the pamphlet and still could only find it with help. I guess I am plant challenged...

I live in Kingman and know first hand the high desert can be terribly unforgiving. All of out vehicles (Trucks All) have a survival kit in them including water, tarps for shade, food and signaling devices as well as bunch of stuf to make your wait as comfortable as possible if you get stranded somewhere.

However, I think the biggest issue here is nobody knew where he had gone. If you are going to venture out into the wilderness it's critically important to tell someone where you are going and when to expect you back. Additionally STAY WITH THE VEHICLE. It's lots bigger and easier to find than a body. This poor fellow make all the worst mistakes and payed for it with his life.

Another example of why you should stay with your car. As so many of these situations play out, his car was found before his body was. One day for this one, might have been enough to save him.

Also, in the desert environment, the car is your best source of shade. ....And putting the hood up and even someone not looking for you in a small plane knows your broke down and might radio it in.

Definitely a hard way to learn a lesson.