Fargo, ND – As North Dakota faces the first snow of the season, particularly along I-94, forecasters warn that temperatures could dip into the teens and travel conditions may quickly deteriorate. But imagine being trapped inside your car for two months, surviving only on handfuls of snow.
According to the Daily Mail, a 44-year-old Swedish man was discovered in February 2012 after surviving roughly 60 days snowed-in inside his car near the town of Umea in northern Sweden. Authorities said his car became buried after a snowstorm on December 19, and he lived on snow alone as temperatures plunged to -30°C (-22°F).
Experts called his survival “a miracle.” Some theorized his body entered a hibernation-like state, slowing his metabolism, while others credited the “igloo effect” of the snow-covered car, which trapped enough warmth to sustain him.
When rescuers reached him, he was emaciated and barely conscious, wrapped in a sleeping bag with only cigarettes and comic books nearby. Doctors at Umea University Hospital said he suffered from severe hypothermia and malnourishment—but miraculously lived.
With early snow hitting before Thanksgiving, North Dakota emergency officials urge drivers to carry cold-weather survival kits with blankets, food, and water in their vehicles. As the Peace Garden State heads into another brutal winter, one chilling question remains: Could you survive stuck on I-94 for two months like he did?
