Snowy Footprints Helped Police Rescue Michigan Man Lost in Woods After Car Crash
The sheriff’s office described the man’s condition at the time as disoriented and showing signs of hypothermia
Angelika Schwarz/Getty
Boot traces in the snow, stock imageMichigan authorities said they were able to find a man who disappeared following a vehicle incident thanks to footprints he left in the snow.
According to a news release shared by the Van Buren County Sheriff’s Office, deputies were alerted about a traffic crash that occurred around 8:30 p.m., local time, on Friday, Jan. 3, in Porter Township. When they arrived, authorities discovered a vehicle that crashed into a tree and its occupant missing, adding that the vehicle was cold and had accumulated snow.
The sheriff’s office said a resident in the area reported that a man approached their home and stated he experienced car trouble and was cold. The man also told the resident that he was heading to a friend’s house, and then left on foot before the deputies arrived.
As the deputies checked the area, said the sheriff’s office, they noticed footprints in the snow leading off the roadway and began following them. The footprints took the deputies through a field, a wooded area and then to the edge of a swamp.
“Deputies eventually located the subject, a 64-year-old Lawton man, who was unresponsive and lying on the ground under some brush,” read the Van Buren County Sheriff’s Office’s news release. “Upon making physical contact with him, they were able to get him to respond and become more coherent. His clothing was wet and starting to freeze and he advised that he could not feel his legs.”
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According to the sheriff’s office, the man told deputies that he crashed his vehicle two hours earlier and became lost. He grew tired and laid down where authorities found him.
The sheriff’s office described the man’s condition at the time as disoriented and showing signs of hypothermia. Authorities led him back to the road, where he was treated by EMS.
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“The weather at the time was around 20 degrees with occasional heavy snow and high winds,” continued the news release. “If the Deputies had not located the footprints and followed them, it is likely that the subject would have succumbed to hypothermia in the edge of the swamp.”
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The sheriff’s office advised people to have basic emergency supplies in their cars in case of an accident or car trouble during winter weather, such as water, a blanket, food and a flashlight.
The man’s name was not identified in the news release. PEOPLE contacted
Van Buren County Sheriff’s Office on Monday, Jan. 6, for additional information.
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