Paraplegic Man Dumped in New Mexico Desert Crawled for 3 Days With No Food or Water
A paraplegic man who says he was stranded in the desert for three days dragged himself four miles down a dirt road to find help.
Ricky Gilmore says he went without food and water for three days after a couple callously threw him out of a car without his wheelchair in New Mexico, according to Associated Press.
The 49-year-old who spent two days in intensive care, and is currently recovering in hospital was found with shredded skin, a sprained wrist, kidney damage and a blood infection by a passing motorist. Gilmore's body is covered in cuts and bruises.
Gilmore, who lives alone and hasn't been able to walk since a bad car accident years ago, says that a man and woman picked him up in a white truck when he was hitchhiking. He had ended up inviting them to his place for steaks, and the trio went on what Gilmore thought was going to be a joyride. When Gilmore refused to share his alcohol, he said that the couple decided to throw him out of the car.
Apparently, the man grabbed Gilmore by his feet and tossed him out of the truck while parked alongside a desolate road.
Gilmore had no wheelchair, no food, no water and no coat to help him survive the flat desert scrubland.
"It was dark and I was shivering and the wind was blowing so I just crawled to a bush and dug in right there. It was cold that night," he said, according to AP.
However, the next morning survival mode kicked in, and he started his journey to try and find help
"I started dragging myself. I did the same thing all day and I only got about two miles," he said.
He said that two people passed by, and when Gilmore tried to flag them down, they only honked and kept going.
"I could have easily gave up and said forget it, but I said I'm not going to freeze out here and I just kept on going," said Gilmore. "I don't think I would have made it another night."