How did a 44-year-old man survive two whole months trapped in his snow-covered car? The right combination of body fat, weather conditions, or quite possibly, just sheer luck.
Peter Skyllberg was found in a totally snow-covered car parked deep in the woods near the northern Swedish town of Umea on Friday, where temperatures had dropped to a reported -30 degrees! The snow luckily created an igloo effect, keeping the air trapped inside the vehicle at a warmer temperature. He told police he had not had access to food since December 19th, surviving solely on snow.
According to the New York Post, the man had lost his job and was living in the woods, sleeping either in a tent or in his car.
Apparently, it’s not so unheard of for a human to survive without food for that long. “Doctor Ulf Segerberg, the Chief Medical Officer at Norrland’s University Hospital reported, “Starvation for one month, anyone can tolerate that if they have water to drink,” Segerberg told the Telegraph. “If you have body fat, you will survive even longer, although you end up looking like someone coming from a concentration camp.”
Some doctors and experts believe that perhaps Skyllberg went into some kind of hibernation, others think it’s a case of sheer luck.
“This is a case in a lifetime. Every winter we have people who have frozen to death. But a case like this, with someone caught outside for such a long time, is very rare, because it’s very rare that you are not missed by anyone, which seems to be the case in this instance.”