Kati Kim describes harrowing week lost in woods

Cold, hunger and fear for the lives of his wife and children had taken a toll on James Kim by the time he left his family to find help.

Stranded in a wilderness for a week with little to eat, James Kim prepared on the morning of December 2 to leave his wife, Kati Kim, and two daughters in order to find help at what he hoped would be a town four miles away, according to report issued Thursday by the Oregon State Sheriffs' Association (OSSA). The group was asked to conduct a review of how the search for the Kims was handled and released its findings on Thursday.

James Kim, an editor at CNET Networks, and his family became stranded deep in a wilderness area in southern Oregon during a Thanksgiving road trip. Kati Kim and her two daughters were rescued nine days later on December 4, but the body of James Kim was found on December 6. He had died of exposure and hypothermia following a 16-mile hike in ice, snow and water.

Kati Kim was interviewed on Monday by investigators and the OSSA report includes her account of how the family became lost, survived on little food or fuel for fires, and tried to contact rescuers. On December 1, the day before he set out on his own, James Kim frantically attempted to restart a fire after hearing a helicopter nearby but failed because of the wet conditions.