Comments on: Cops: Kims Stuck On Road Opened By Vandals

Authorities Say Someone Cut The Lock, Opening Mountain Road Where Family Ended Up Stranded

[aeasus]

His body was found in shallow water feeding Big Windy Creek, about a mile away from the lodge, where he could have found shelter,
............

sheeesh.... Another place there should have been a road sign!

[kailumego1]

This is a very sad story, but what's even sadder the insensitivity and inhumanity of some who degrade this man%u2019s good faith attempt to save his family, which if placed in an identical situation would have done the same.

All this man tried to do is save his family, and because some viewed him as a %u201Chero%u201D, the impassionate ones try to defame his effort through making erroneous comparisons between him and professional %u201Cfirefighters%u201D lifesavers.

Certainly %u201Cfirefighters%u201D are heroes, along with %u201Cgood%u201D police officers, teachers, clergy, etc., but to make an erroneous comparison between a man trying to save the lives of his family and a firefighter, whose job is to save lives, is really going on the brink of absurdity.

I%u2019m quite sure if given the choice he would have rather been home in a warm bed, instead of the blistering cold, why are you people so cynical and apathetic.

Now this mother has to raise her children without the love of their father, and knowing that should bring tears to any rationally humane human being.

[bigreddog222]

newster 1
I see what you are saying. Please try to look at it from the perspective of the family. Maybe that is what the article is saying.

just a thought.

[nothappyatall]

"hero" does not fit is right, he was trying to save himself as much as his family, that's not hero that's survival instincts.

HERO is the underpaid overworked young fireman sitting in the nice warm firehouse watching TV late during a major snowstorm when the bells go off, and in a few minutes he is climbing up the stairs with 100+ pounds of gear in an apartment house on fire with flames coming out the windows and people he can't see screaming for help.

Hero is this fireman who goes INTO the burning apartment on the top floor of a rickey burning tenement in the slum to look for people while the room is so full of smoke he can't see but has to FEEL for unconscious victims, and the celing is on fire- ready to collapse, that's MY definition of a hero- the guy who DOESN'T have to be in extreme danger but willing goes without a moment's thought into burning buildings, that's a hero.

[nothappyatall]

"An autopsy released Thursday showed that he died alone of hypothermia. His body was found in a creek's shallow water, "

They did an AUTOPSY to find out the OBVIOUS???
are we just obsessed with keeping records of everything morbid and death as a society or what.

[tempuser1]

By the way denver1010, they were NOT on an advanture survival trip - as I said they were simply going from one *major city* to another. Yes, they could have prepared better but I don't feel what they did was a major mistake either.

And you are missing the point. The praise came from the fact that he did everything he could and sacrificed everything for his family, and that's where the "hero" part comes from.

Finally, again, please stop lecturing after the fact... we could all be geniuses after we know how things played out. He ran into an unexpected realy situation that he's not trained for and did not ask for (refer to my 1st paragraph). Given that, he did remarkably well.

At last, to those who still feel he somehow created the situation himself or didn't do the perfect things, I challenge you to go train in boxing as well as you can, then go have a real boxing match and tell me you did everything perfectly.

[gmond]

James Kim died a hero.

[tempuser1]

To those who criticize James, I'd like to point out that

1. What they did was driving home from one major city to another in the winter and missed a turn... sure, maybe not the perfectly perfect thing to do, but I definetly wouldn't call it a situation he created on his own. Who hasn't pushed the envelope just a little - never drove just a few miles above speed limit?

2. Then some say that he should or should not have done this and that to stay alive. Sure, there are experts' theoretical advices... but I have got trainings in many things and let me say that in a real situation, things are rarely the same or as easy as it is in theory. It's easy to say stay and wait for help... but put yourself in the situation and imagine you've been starving and cold for 7 days and no one came, and your family is dying, you might start to believe that looking for help might be the only chance you had. Yes, it turned out it wasn't the case this time, but it could have been. So please don't be so naive and simply quote the books, but appreciate how remarkably smart and strong he was when dealing with this real and extremely devastating situation.

After all, what we all should see is a loving father who did the best he knew how for his family, his loved ones. James you ARE a hero for that, and you inspired us all. May you rest in peace.

[denver101010]

I do believe the word, "Superhuman" is appropriate. The only national media company that refused to fall in line with the A.P. report is Fox News. Every other media organization, including CBS, is using the word "Superhuman" like the guy should get a Nobel Prize. What I see is a techno-geek with a high technology review program going out in a high tech S.U.V. and relying to much on his gps, cellphone, and blackberry. Get ready people, you are seeing the future! From the Hummer ads that show people driving underwater, to the the Jeep ads where people drive up Mount Everest. He put his family%u2019s lives in the hand of the wrong technology. He failed to have wilderness technology.
If you really, really want to do this kind of thing, do like my family does. Go out and buy a MINI-B or Class II EPIRB. I have one right here in my hand. Press two buttons, and you are a spot on a satellite system at NORAD. I drive between Denver and Montrose, Co. all the time.. I have a supply of Campmor freeze dried meals, bottled water, and blankets. I also have a wideband Ham transceiver and portable inverted V antenna. This is low technology but I can talk to people in Texas if I get into trouble.
A superhuman would be prepared. He had no well thought survival plan. Defend him as much as you wish, but will that help the next hapless guy who gets into the same situation? No. He needs to be scrutinized as to prevent other people from loosing their lives. Do Not Let This Happen To You!

[mhanif76-2009]

Walking 10 miles in the heavy snow in search of help is no joke. That's equal to 200 NYC blocks...and the man died just short of 1 mile return trip to his car. Indeed very sad, but it's a sharp reminder that as humans we never know what would be our wrong turn in life. Nevertheless, be prepared to go from this world one day.

[monireed]

perhaps only if you have lost a beloved father in an untimely or tragic circumstance could you actually understand the true heartbreak and sorrow that will remain. James Kim joins other selfless heroes, who laid down their own lives for another. my deepest sympathies. believe me i do know...i'm daddy's girl.

[alves8444]

So Sad. Our sympathy goes to his brave wife and daughters. I only hope that people have learned that nature is not a disney ride. Being prepared is not just a watchword. It could mean the difference between life and death. Hopefully this man has not died in vain.

[idunkwn41]

I think the word is thrown around to alot of people who don't deserve it in that case....
I for one hope all their lives his little girls believe him to be their hero after all he gave up his life to do everything he could to help fix a terrible situation of his own making or not they deserve to believe their Daddy is their Hero even is the more callus people in the world refuse to feel that way

[mrthornman]

idunkwn41:

I understand what you are saying. He did the best he could in the situation. But it was a situation that was created by his own mistakes. Those are the facts.

I have great sympathy for his family. But the word hero still does not fit.

[sueneely]

Violation of the most important rule when lost
has resulted in a death. Stay together and stay in one place even if you're lost in a mall.

[idunkwn41]

Mrthornman, It would appear that you and bobgee are not reading the same things we are this family took a wrong turn.
and as I understand it this happens to alot of people in that area.
The reason this man is being called a hero is that this day in age it is hard to find anyone who is selfless enough to do this kind of thing even for his family

[ketemkin]

If I were the head of the time charged to find these people I would have dropped supplies, phone, food, gear, and a siren that stays on until the person lost follows the sound and finds it.

I can't imagine man just sit and watch his family die without doing something. That is just what this man did but he could have benefited from a few discovery channel survivor shows.

[mrthornman]

For all those folks attacking bobgee:

This man put his family in a situation that almost got them killed. He was totally unprepared and untrained to deal with it. He died as a result.


This is a tragic situation. But the word hero should not be used.

[aeasus]

to comehomesafe,

I completely disagree with your last post.
If it's a public roadway it should definetly be clearly marked with ALL applicable signage. It shouldn't cost a life to close a gate or post a sign!!!

[lioness41]

If only he had stayed with his family!

I have lived in Oregon for 23 years, and I know what happens to people, however heroic they are trying to be, who go out in the snow in November or December in a sweater and sneakers.

As soon as he did that he was getting chilled, and not long after that hypothermia must have started setting in. The exercise would help stave it off but shedding clothes to use as markers would make it worse!

Mother Nature eats people who go out in the snow unprepared around here. It's only sheer luck they found him before spring.

Did you know that only global warming has led us to the bodies of two climbers who died on Mount Hood thirty years ago? It's only last winter that enough ice had melted for them to be found, preserved as if they died yesterday.