Man Dies of Exposure in Death Valley
A Southern California man was found dead of apparent heat exposure after he tried to walk nearly 20 miles across the desert carrying parts and supplies to repair his vehicle, officials said Thursday.
Searchers found the body of Robert Darmer, 35, of Sunland on Wednesday about two miles from hot springs in the park’s Saline Valley, sheriff’s Sgt. Randy Nixon said.
He was believed to have died July 27.
Authorities said Darmer had been given a ride to the valley to fix his vehicle and was dropped off at the northern entrance, where the road was washed out. From there, he tried to hike across the valley to his vehicle.
A search-and-rescue team was dispatched after Darmer failed to show up at a relative’s home in Bishop.
With 3.4 million acres, Death Valley is the largest national park outside Alaska and one of the hottest places on Earth during the summer.
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