By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter
CHEHALIS – The elderly rural Chehalis man found dead in the woods near his home after not being seen for almost three days died from hypothermia, according to the Lewis County Coroner’s Office.
Warren Neal, 87, was known for often taking walks in the areas around his residence, on the 100 block of Fircrest Road, south of Chehalis.
He was reported missing by family in the early morning hours of May 5 and discovered by search and rescue personnel the following afternoon along one of his commonly traveled trails, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.
Sheriff’s Chief Deputy Dusty Breen said this afternoon it appears he may have become confused while out walking, there were no physical injuries, and it seemed he may have simply laid down at some point.
“The time frame from when he went missing was around the large rain storm we had,” Breen said.
Hypothermia can be a rapid onset and causes people to even become more confused, according to Breen.
Coroner Warren McLeod has ruled the death accidental. But the sheriff’s office is awaiting the results of tests and the conclusion of a final review before it completes its investigation to make sure they have looked at all angles of the case, according to Breen.
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For background, read “News brief: Elderly Chehalis man found dead in woods near home” from Sunday May 7, 2017, here
Tags: By Sharyn L. Decker, news reporter
When it’s my time I would like to just take that one way walk in the forest and sleep in the snow. I will probably leave a note so people don’t spend a lot of time searching however.