TECUMSEH, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say a 78-year-old Tecumseh farmer whose truck got stuck in the midst of a blizzard last weekend died of exposure.
LeRoy Holthus was reported missing Sunday after a neighbor found his unoccupied pickup truck stuck in a ditch.
Johnson County Attorney Rick Smith said Friday that law enforcement and a police dog tried to find Holthus on Sunday night, but blowing snow and darkness thwarted their efforts. The area received as much as 9 inches of snow by Monday morning.
Road crews helped deputies clear snow drifts in their search Monday morning. Holthus’ body was found at 8:30 a.m. about 150 yards northeast of his truck at a grain bin site. Preliminary autopsy results indicate Holthus died of hypothermia.