Missing man with autism found

[Guest guest]

It's interesting how this article says this man 'disappeared' and 'vanished.' Then it goes on to say the truth ... 'counselors lost track of him!' Thank goodness he was found after surviving for a week in the woods. Nila

Missing man with autism found

GRANTSBURG, Wisconsin (AP) -- An autistic man who disappeared a week ago from a camp for the disabled and who relies on medication after a kidney transplant was found alive in the woods Sunday, authorities said.

The condition of Kennedy, 25, of Shoreview, Minnesota, was not immediately available. He was stabilized and flown to the University of Minnesota hospital in the Twin Cities, the Burnett County Sheriff's Department said in a news release.

Searchers feared Kennedy might suffer a medical emergency without the anti-rejection drugs he has taken since his transplant in 1995. He can only speak four words, and searchers had feared he might not respond if they called out to him.

He was found about a mile from the camp in an area inaccessible by road, deputies said. Hundreds of volunteers had helped scour at least 14 square miles, a search that included helicopters and boaters.

Kennedy vanished June 15 from the Trade Lake Camp for developmentally disabled adults. He was returning to the bunk house for the evening when counselors lost track of him, according to head counselor Barb Denn.

Kennedy, known as a wanderer, was seen walking south on a highway from the camp driveway the night he disappeared, the sheriff said.

Authorities had been optimistic that Kennedy's good physical condition would allow him to survive alone in the woods.

'He may not be as afraid,' Sheriff Dean Roland had said Thursday. 'His mom says he is very resourceful. If he sees a plant and he wants to try it and it tastes good, he will eat it.'

Roland, who coordinated the rescue efforts, did not immediately return a message left by The Associated Press on Sunday night.

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