Robert Lemos

Search and rescue teams found the body of James Kim, a senior editor at CNET Networks, in the Oregon wilderness on Wednesday. My thoughts and condolences go out to his family.

James and his family had taken a wrong turn on their way to the Oregon coast on Saturday, November 25. Their car had gotten stuck in a snow bank late that night, according to reports. On Saturday, December 2, James left the car in an attempt to find help. He intended to head back at midday, but never returned, according to reports.

Search and rescue teams, which began looking in southwestern Oregon a week earlier, had focused their efforts in the general area of Bear Camp, after a cell phone record found that the Kim’s phone had pinged a tower near Glendale, Ore. On Monday, December 4, a private helicopter hired to help searchers found James’ wife Kati and his two girls–Penelope, 4, and Sabine, 7 months–after Kati waved an open umbrella to get their attention. The mother and two daughters were in remarkably good condition after a nine-day ordeal.

The search for James came to a conclusion two days later when searchers found his body in the snow.

I met James during my time at ZDNet, where I wrote often about PC and consumer hardware. James worked at TechTV, and we often talked about new technology in the field–a habit that continued when our jobs crossed paths at CNET. As we seldom met outside work, I cannot claim we were good friends, but his easy-going attitude always made me feel that we were more than just colleagues.

The world will be a poorer place without him. My thoughts and prayers go out to his wife, children and family.

Donations to the family can be made at the James and Kati Web site.

UPDATE: CNET News.com has posted a nice obituary for James on their site.