Fargo teen hospitalized after being found in subzero temps

I am in the process of looking into this case a little bit further. Stay tuned for a special investigative report.

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Fargo teen hospitalized after being found in subzero temps

By (Copyright 2010 by KARE. All Rights Reserved.)

KARE11.com

updated 7:45 a.m. CT, Tues., Jan. 5, 2010

MINNEAPOLIS -- A teenager from Fargo is hospitalized tonight in Minneapolis after wandering in frigid temperatures for hours.

He had actually taken off his jacket and his shoes and was found trying to get inside a church early New Year's Day.

His family hopes it can be a lifesaving reminder for anyone in these freezing temperatures.

Recovering from his severely frostbitten feet, 18-year-old Jacob Eichelberger is choosing not to talk today. But he and his family do want to send a message, that alcohol and the bitter cold can be deadly.

His aunt, Julie Helm, says, "He is grateful to be here with us and alive. The doctor told him when they found him that he had only 45 minutes before he would have been gone."

Helm says Eichelberger was at a house party in Fargo on New Years Eve. She says, "People that purchase alcohol for kids that are not of age need to quit."

It's unclear how much alcohol Eichelberger had, if much at all, although police do say it was a factor. But eventually he ended up outside where Helm says it was 7 below with a 30 below windchill and he became hypothermic.

Gina Cincinelli, a physician's assistant in burn and plastic surgery at HCMC says, "When your internal corps body temperature drops, you immediately become disoriented."

Helm says Eichelberger called someone at 1:30 a.m. She says, "He was confused from the cold and he didn't know where he was."

So family, friends and police searched for him for hours.


Helm says, "His mom gave him a necklace of a cross with wings that he has on his neck right now. And he held onto that the whole time and prayed that somebody would find him and save him."

She says the only reason he was found was that he was trying to break into this church and someone called police. His shoes and coat were gone.

Helm says the doctor told them that when someone becomes hypothermic, "you get hot and you start shedding your clothing."

Initially it was feared Eichelberger would need both feet amputated. But he was taken to HCMC and treated with TPA, a drug often used to treat stroke.

Cincinelli says, "It actually increases the blood flow to the affected extremities or digits."

So now the damage appears to be much less.

Cincinelli says, "He will likely, maybe lose a big toe, a great toe out of this thing."

Currently there are four people with severe frostbite hospitalized at HCMC, and many more being treated.

Eichelberger is in serious condition.

While his aunt says its unclear how much alcohol, if much at all, he consumed, Cincinelli says any amount can be dangerous when it's this cold.

02/02/06: Scott Radel, 21, St. Cloud, MN

On February 2, 2006, St. Cloud State University junior, Scott Radel left McRudy's Pub to head over to meet his roommates at the Press Bar a few blocks away. He got lost along the way and called them for directions. He seemed disoriented and was going in the wrong direction. After three or four calls back and forth, his phone went dead. Investigators found what appear to be Scott’s footprints on the frozen Mississippi River just two blocks east of the bar. The footprints indicated that Scot tumbled down an embankment to the Mississippi as he was running, headed across the frozen river, then fell into open water. His body was found in the river on March 1, 2006.


Last Seen
Scott's friends have said they had been at two bars earlier that night. Scott was last seen at McRudy's Pub at 715 W St Germain Street. He called his friends while walking to the Press Bar on 502 W St. Germain Street. Scott's friends believed they thought he had become confused and walked in the wrong direction. They called police the next morning after they failed to hear from him



The Search
Searchers found footprints to the river on 2/4/06 leading to open water. Police and family members said the footprint matched shoes like the kind Radel was wearing the night he was last seen. With the help of an underwater camera (see photo at right), Scott's hat was recovered from the river near the dam on 02/14/06.

Scott Recovered
The recovery of that hat helped focus the search effort, and two weeks later, his body was found in 11 feet of water just south of a railroad bridge. Police Chief Dennis Ballantine told reporters there was "no evidence of foul play," and no obvious signs of injury to the body. Radel's wallet (with money inside), cell phone, keys and watch were found on his body.

Theories
Radel’s father, Allan, believes Scott got into a vehicle, was attacked, and then managed to get away. He ran not knowing where he was going or that he was headed toward the river. He rolled down the embankment. Seeing a lighted stairway across the river, he ran toward it. He fell into the cold open water, and swam as long as he could.

Facts of Interest
Name/age: Scott Radel, 21 (from Owatonna, MN)
College: St. Cloud State University (business major)
Physical description: Korean, 5’5,” 145 pounds, brown hair w/lighter highlights, brown eyes, athletic (wrestler)
Last Seen: 02/02/06, 11:30 p.m., McRudy’s Pub at 715 W St Germain Street, walking to Press Bar on 502 W St. Germain Street
Recovered: 03/01/06, 1:45 pm, Mississippi River, south of a railroad bridge
Cause of death: apparent drowning
Injuries: no injuries, no sign of foul play

02/16/97: Patrick McNeil, 21, New York City, NY

Patrick McNeill, 21, was last seen on the Upper East Side of New York City on February 16, 1997. He had been bar hopping with some friends, and one police source said he was incredibly drunk. He was last seen at 2nd Ave. and 92nd St. walking outside The Dapper Dog, where he left shortly before midnight. He had told friends he was tired and had an early class and would take the subway back to the Bronx campus. A friend said she would join him for the subway ride to Fordham's Rose Hill campus in the Bronx after she used the ladies room. He agreed to wait, but when she returned he was gone.