The story of David Welch, 54, is one that could easily win the Oscars if it's made into a movie. The man from Kansas was reported missing on September 2 and was found dead October 18 in his totally wrecked minivan in a ravine along the Interstate 70 in eastern Utah. In the lonely stretch of the highway, 900 miles away from his home, Welch, while fighting for his life and desperately waiting for rescuers, wrote love notes to say goodbye to his family.
The body of the retired Frito-Lay salesman was discovered by a hitchhiker in a dusty and desolate spot about 45 miles from Green River. The Utah Highway Patrol Group theorized that Welch might have fallen asleep while cruising along the interstate on September 3, went off the road, and dropped into the 80-foot ravine landing upside down and smashing the passenger side of the maroon 2000 model Pontiac Montana. No one witnessed the accident. Thousands of vehicles might have passed by the highway but the wreck was out of view of any passersby.
The victim was pinned in the car. The police said that the man had very slim chances of survival even if he managed to get out of the vehicle. With his injuries, he could not journey to the nearest town, which was almost an hour away by car. The man might have battled for his life for a few days or even weeks and while Welch knew that he would not survive, he wrote love letters to his wife Kelly and his four sons. The patrolman who recovered the notes did not reveal what was in them and just described them as a "a pretty private matter."
Welch left his home in Manhattan, Kansas, on the night of September 2 without telling anyone where he was going. After several hours, his family reported the matter to the police. However, searches and follow up reports in the next 46 days were to no avail. The medical examiner has not determined the cause of death of Welch as of reporting.
"Dave was entrapped in the vehicle down the 80-foot ravine, he wrote each of us a love note. He knew he was dying and there was no way out," tweeted Kelly on the day the police found her husband. Her tweets are now protected and only accessible to verified followers. Kelly teaches at the Kansas State University.
Welch's funeral was held last Friday. The funeral was on the verge of being cancelled because his body was unintentionally sent to Atlanta. The family received his death certificate on Monday.
Why Welch left his home and why he cruised along Utah will remain a mystery.
