California
Stuck – man (81) survives six days with only cookies and snow
Actually, the journey should only have taken three hours for Jerry Jouret. But on the way to Nevada, he got stuck in a snowdrift on a deserted Californian road – and had to wait almost a week for his rescuers to arrive.
published
Jouret’s car got stuck in the snow during a storm.
Dear County Sheriff’s Office
Several teams left after four days to look for the missing person.
Dear County Sheriff’s Office
A good three feet of snow had fallen in the mountains of California.
Dear County Sheriff’s Office
Jerry Jouret with his wife and grandson Christian.
Christian Jouret
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An 81-year-old California man got stuck in his car in the snow for six days.
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He ate a couple of cookies he had with him and “drank” snow.
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When a search helicopter found him, Jerry Jouret was still in relatively good shape.
On February 24, Jerry Jouret drove in his SUV from his vacation home in Big Pine, California, to return to his family in Gardnerville, Nevada. The route can be covered in just over three hours – but for the former NASA employee it was to be the longest trip of his life.
Because after about 30 minutes drive in the snowy Californian mountains he took a wrong turn and ended up on a road with little traffic, which was hardly passable because of the massive snowfall – in the region 90 centimeters of snow fell – as reported by CNN. He promptly got stuck in a snowdrift with his car.
Jouret was ill-equipped for the prevailing sub-zero temperatures. He wore only a relatively thin windbreaker and wrapped himself up against the cold in a hotel towel and quilt that were in the car. He also apparently had no cell phone reception and was unable to call for help. But the retired mathematician did not give up. He kept the engine running to stay warm and quenched the hunger pangs with some biscotti, croissants and caramels he had in the car. To quench his thirst, he ate snow through the open side window.
On the third day, the car’s battery died just as Jouret was closing the window. For the remainder of his involuntary stay, it remained open a few inches.
Search delayed due to weather
Jouret’s family had since reported him missing. The Inyo County Sheriff and the regional rescue organization SAR launched a search on February 28, but had to wait another day because of the weather. It was not until March 2 that the police received a “ping” from the cell phone they were looking for, and shortly thereafter a search team in a helicopter discovered the snow-covered car. jouret was saved and flown to a hospital to be checked. “The nurses could hardly believe how good his condition was,” reports grandson Christian.
Jouret was taken back to Big Pine from where he traveled to Nevada by bus. His SUV has to wait in the snow until the weather allows him to continue his journey.
“Always have emergency supplies with you on wintry roads”
His grandson is full of praise for his grandfather: “He’s a very smart person,” says Christian Jouret. He is fine, but still traumatized by the experience. “I hope this serves as a warning to others about how dangerous it can be to travel in the dead of winter,” said the grandson. “You should always have emergency supplies with you. But the most important thing is never to give up hope. It’s amazing what the human body can endure.”
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