An autistic man lived on frogs and roots as he wandered for weeks in the remote Escalante Desert of southern Utah until being rescued, emaciated but alive.

William Martin LaFever, 28, told rescuers that in addition to the bits of food he scavenged, including a few frogs he caught, he drank water from the Escalante River while attempting to walk from Boulder, Utah, to Page, Arizona, a distance of approximately 145 kilometers or more by the route he appeared to be taking.

The Garfield County Sheriff's Department estimated he had traveled about 65 kilometers) over at least three weeks before he was found Thursday.

“It is some of the most rugged, unforgiving terrain you will find anywhere on Earth, jagged cliffs, stone ledges, sandstone, sagebrush, juniper,” sheriff's spokeswoman Becki Bronson said in a telephone interview.

“Where William was hiking, there just isn't anyone out there,” she said. “There are no people. There are no towns.”

The sheriff's department said it was remarkable that searchers aboard a helicopter were able to find LaFever at all, much less alive.

Deputy Ray Gardner, who had recently completed training in search and rescue operations for people with autism and was aboard the helicopter, said LaFever would not have survived another 24 hours.

The helicopter took LaFever to a local hospital. The hospital said it could not release any information on his condition.

LaFever was trying to get to Page because his father, John LaFever told him he would wire money to him in there, the sheriff's department said in a written release.

William LaFever had called his father on June 6 or 7 to say he was hiking in the Boulder area with his dog, and that someone had stolen some of his hiking gear and he had run out of money. John LaFever told his son to catch a ride to Page to collect the money.

Unbeknownst to his father, William LaFever apparently decided to hike down the Escalante River and then hitch a boat ride along Lake Powell to Page, rather than try to catch a ride, the sheriff's department said.

LaFever set out along the river but ran out of food. His dog left him, and LaFever began abandoning his gear until all he had was the clothing and shoes he was wearing when he was found, the sheriff's department said.

The dog hasn't been seen since. Authorities do not know why the dog ran off, Bronson said.

The early June phone call was the last time the family heard from LaFever, and his sister reported him missing on Monday, the sheriff's department said.

A telephone message left at the LaFevers' home wasn't immediately returned.

Gardner's training in searching for people with autism taught him they are naturally drawn to water, so the helicopter search focused on the Escalante River, the department said.

The helicopter team spotted LaFever Thursday afternoon, sitting in the Escalante River about eight kilometers from Lake Powell, weakly waving at the aircraft.

Gardner was dumbfounded when LaFever identified himself because of the long odds of finding anyone in that country, the sheriff's department said.

“In all my career I have never seen someone so emaciated,” Gardner was quoted as saying in the sheriff's department release. “I could not believe that he was alive, and feel certain that in another 24 hours he would not have been alive.” (AP)

<관련 한글 기사>

실종된 자폐증 男, 3주만에...

미국에서 자폐증을 앓는 남성이 길을 잃고 지형이 험한 사막을 헤매다가 3주 만에 극적으로 구조됐다.

가필드 카운티의 보안관 사무소는 윌리엄 마틴 라피버(28)가 지난달 초 실종된 뒤 최소 3주 동안 남부 유타주(州)의 에스컬랜티 사막을 헤매다가 12일(현지시간) 구조됐다고 밝혔다.

보안관 사무소는 또 하루만 구조가 늦었더라면 생존할 수 없었을 정도로 라피버 가 매우 수척한 상태였다고 덧붙였다.

라피버가 길을 잃게 된 것은 "자동차를 얻어 타고 페이지시(市)로 가라"는 아버지의 말을 잘못 이해했기 때문이었다.

라피버는 이 말을 듣고 자동차 대신 파월 호(浩)에서 배를 얻어 타야겠다는 생각에 에스컬랜티 강을 따라 하산하다가 실종됐다.

보안관 사무소에 따르면 라피버는 사람이 전혀 살지 않는 험한 사막 지대에서 3 주 동안 직접 잡은 개구리 몇 마리와 쓰레기 더미에서 겨우 찾아낸 음식물을 먹으며 생존했다.

보안관 사무소는 자폐증 환자들이 본능적으로 물을 좋아한다는 점에 착안, 헬리콥터를 동원해 에스컬랜티 강 인근을 집중 수색한 끝에 라피버를 구조했다고 밝혔다.

구조 당시 라피버는 실종 지점에서 65km이나 떨어진 곳에 있었으며, 서 있을 힘 도 없는 상태였다고 덧붙였다.

그는 구조 직후 인근 병원으로 이송돼 치료를 받았다.