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

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

[swwils]

This story ends in such a tragedy.That man is a hero.He tried to save his family and paid the ultimate price.I feel sorry for the family of this man,such a terrible loss.

[aeasus]

Kim %u2014 took two lighters with him when he left the car, Anderson said. "Maybe he got a fire going,"

When the father struck out for help, he left wearing only tennis shoes, pants, a sweater and a jacket. His family said he had outdoor experience, and Oregon State Police Lt. Doug Ladd said there is "a very reasonable chance" that he is still alive.

Kim had walked five miles up a road, then five more miles down rugged Big Windy Creek. Despite his long hike, he was only a mile from the car, which was near the road to the lodge.


got lost in the snowy wilderness died of hypothermia near a fishing lodge stacked with food, authorities said.


This is so sad noone thought to send a light into the night sky from the lodge.

[telescopium]

I would have to say I see him as a hero too. Yes her was trying to save himself too, but he went for help for his family. His wife and two babies. He died trying to save his family. It my eyes that does make him a hero.

[thgdriver]

newster1

Thank you for your definition/discription of the word "HERO".

How about fiermen/police/man on street that saves strangers lives are super heros and James Kim is only a HERO, would that make you happy and shut up??

Can we move on?

[aeasus]

I read the logging road his car was found on was gated. Sadly it was left open and not properly marked.

[nothappyatall]

Mr Kim was a victim of circumstance, he did what he could to extricate himself out of it but failed to. I am familiar with these BLM roads in Oregon (logging roads) the mystery is why the state doesn't either post signs "ROAD CLOSED" or temporarily barricade them in some way,with yellow rubber flex cones, but for fire reasons they cant be permanently barricaded and would probably be vandalised.

[nothappyatall]

kailumego1; sorry you disagree, that is your opinion I have mine. No one is denegrating the man's actions but I am noticing a trend in the media and comments towards a false romanticized version of how Kim was ONLY trying to save his FAMILY when HE was out there in the cold too- not viewing this whole thing from a remote monitor in a cozy warm room or something, HE wanted to get out of there as much as anyone else would.
There's now EIGHT video clips and more on this site about this incident- again it goes right back to the corporate cashing in by the new media on a hot story tugging it for all it's worth.

As far as firefighters go, yes, that is their job, but one they WILLINGLY take, and whether someone is a professional firefighter as a job or someone stranded in the cold- pain is still pain, and death is still death whether you are paid to be there or are there as a victim of circumstance, accident or malicious intent (as in the case of arson)
The term "Hero" is not confined to just one class of person or their employment.

Trying to get YOURSELF out of such a situation even if others are involved is different than stopping your car on the freeway and risking your life extricating the driver of a burning gasoline tanker that crashed, when you could simply have rubbernecked in safety and watched the guy burn, that's a hero (non paid by the way)

[ecuadoriana]

Let's not forget that Mrs. Kim is also a hero. She stayed behind with the HUGE responsibility of caring for their 2 young children: keeping them warm & fed, resorting to relying solely on breatfeeding them after the food ran out. Breastfeeding them, with no food for herself, was surely depleting her own strength. She had the responsibility of keeping herself alive & SANE for the sake of her children, to keep her own fears in check in order to keep the children calm. She had the responsibility of keeping them alive all the while knowing that she could possibly face the worst- watching them die in her arms.

Anyone who risks his/her life to save their family is a hero.

Everyone of us has made a wrong turn on a highway, missed an exit, let the gas tank get dangerously close to "E", thought "this way looks like a short cut" only to find himself driving in circles...&, as we can see from this tragidy, relying on technology isn't the safety net we're led to believe. The bottom line is the bottom dollar- the job is to sell technology, not for the consumer's good, but to get his money!

Tell people your itinerary, pack emergency supplies of food, water, flares, etc. when going on long trips. Use common sense.

[aeasus]

I see a surge in boy scout recruits coming soon.

[ediemeyers]

What I don't understand is why James Kim just did not walk back from the side road back to the main highway?

It seems that it would have been easier and safer than getting lost in the woods. The approach seemed convoluted.

I would have stayed on the road and backtracked from there.