The news media makes it sound as if they just took a wrong turn off the freeway. The reality is that they were many, many miles out of the way. I've been to the same area where they were stranded and it was an easy drive in the summer. In the winter that's not the case; in fact the one-lane paved USFS road they took to get to the area isn't even plowed or maintained in the winter. One blurb I heard was that Mr. Kim had to stick his head out of the window while driving to see ahead through the falling snow. There are road signs and notations on maps warning of travel through the area.
I'm glad the wife and children were found. They stayed alive after nine days of being stuck. Unfortunately Mr. Kim's fate wasn't the same.
I hope that others see the story and take something from it. There is not safety or assistance around every corner, and bad things can happen to good people.
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