Man with autism survives 50 hours in woods during heat wave
BLEECKER, N.Y. (AP) - Forest rangers say a man with autism relied on his Boy Scout skills while he was lost in New York's Adirondack woods for 50 hours during a heat wave.
The Times-Union of Albany reports that Bruce Williams floated on his back in a lake to conserve his energy, located safe drinking water from a stream and stayed calm as he awaited his rescuers, who found him Monday afternoon. The 29-year-old was an Eagle Scout, the highest Boy Scout rank.
The Albany-area resident has problems communicating. He also has weak peripheral vision and motor dysfunction. He left his family's camp in the Adirondack foothills for a swim on Saturday afternoon, when temperatures climbed into the 90s. Rangers found him sunburned, bug-bitten and scratched up, but in good health and spirits.