Emaciated US Man Lost In The Desert For Weeks

An autistic man who went missing in the desert for three weeks has been found alive after living mainly off frogs and roots.

William LaFever was severely emaciated when he was discovered wandering in the remote Escalante Desert in southern Utah.

The 28-year-old, from Colorado Springs, told rescuers that in addition to the bits of food he scavenged, he drank water from the Escalante River while attempting to walk a distance of around 90 miles.

Becki Bronson, a spokeswoman for the Garfield County Sheriff's Department , said it was estimated he had travelled about 40 miles before he was found.

"It is some of the most rugged, unforgiving terrain you will find anywhere on Earth - jagged cliffs, stone ledges, sandstone, sagebrush, junipers," she said.

"Where William was hiking, there just isn't anyone out there. There are no people. There are no towns."

The Sheriff's Department said it was remarkable that searchers aboard a helicopter had been able to find Mr LaFever at all, much less alive.

The helicopter took Mr LaFever to Garfield Memorial Hospital, which said it could not release any information on his condition.

Mr LaFever had called his father on June 6 or 7 to say he was hiking 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 nearby Page to collect the money.

But he decided instead to hike along the river before hitching a boat ride across Lake Powell, but later ran out of food.

His dog left him, and Mr LaFever began abandoning his gear until all he had was the clothing he was wearing when he was found. The dog has not been seen since.

Deputy Ray Gardner had recently completed training in search and rescue operations for people with autism and was aboard the helicopter.

Mr Gardner's training had taught him autistic people are naturally drawn to water, so the helicopter search focused on the Escalante River - where Mr LaFever was eventually spotted, around five miles from Lake Powell, waving at the aircraft.

"In all my career I have never seen someone so emaciated," Mr Gardner said.

"I could not believe that he was alive, and feel certain that in another 24 hours he would not have been."