Found Deceased CA - Philip Kreycik, 37, Pleasanton Ridge Regional Park, 10 Jul 2021 #2

[ElizabethAnne]

Thank you for this analysis. Could it be possible SAR already checked this place and he wasn't there when they did?

I don't know. The 13:10 press conference cideo is on this webpage After 3 weeks of searching, body of missing runner Philip Kreycik found in Pleasanton

The Pleasanton trails map shows a series of pre-existing trails in the northern section of Pleasanton Ridge park. However, Captain Breed of the EBRPD characterizes where Philip was found as very remote areas where raccoons and other animals make game trails.

The only trail I see from the helicopter footage and Google maps is the end of the North Ridge trail, the trail that Sgt. Kelly from the Alameda County Sheriff's office says Philip was on because he did not make a turn back to the Moller Ranch area.

A reporter toward the end of the news conference at 10:45 asks Lt. Silacci from the Pleasanton police about the 100% statement and part of the answer says that they were using the cell phone designated route as the basis of the search area which they said they searched thoroughly.

A short time later the police after that particular question the police did not take further questions and ended the press conference.

Along with the emergency vehicles entering the area via the end of Blessing Dr, this KTVU news report Body found near East Bay trail believed to be of missing runner Philip Kreycik shows vehicles at the bottom entering the gates at Santos Ranch Rd, a private road that connects to the North Ridge trail, which then from Google Maps satellite view goes to the point near where Philip was found near the northern edge of Pleasanton Ridge park where the North Ridge trail seems to abruptly stop. In the article above it says 'Local runners told police that it’s not uncommon for runners or hikers to leave the trail, many times due to the heat, and take a shortcut through the heavy brush to return to their cars." Did Philip think that going north on the North Ridge trail would lead him to an exit trail where he could return to his car? Or get quickly to the area next to the freeway (e.g., news reports said the hilltop where he was found overlooked I-580)?

If they had not had that route on the cell phone, could Philip have been located a lot sooner? Did they assume he would stick to this route even though with the significant heat up there that could possibly lead to that not happening? Or is it possible that he was not there on the initial cursory search of the park or somewhere else and later on he went to under the tree? Those are all good questions and I don't know if anyone has the answers.

 

[terracotta1982]

I don't know. The 13:10 press conference cideo is on this webpage After 3 weeks of searching, body of missing runner Philip Kreycik found in Pleasanton

The Pleasanton trails map shows a series of pre-existing trails in the northern section of Pleasanton Ridge park. However, Captain Breed of the EBRPD characterizes where Philip was found as very remote areas where raccoons and other animals make game trails.

The only trail I see from the helicopter footage and Google maps is the end of the North Ridge trail, the trail that Sgt. Kelly from the Alameda County Sheriff's office says Philip was on because he did not make a turn back to the Moller Ranch area.

A reporter toward the end of the news conference at 10:45 asks Lt. Silacci from the Pleasanton police about the 100% statement and part of the answer says that they were using the cell phone designated route as the basis of the search area which they said they searched thoroughly.

A short time later the police after that particular question the police did not take further questions and ended the press conference.

Along with the emergency vehicles entering the area via the end of Blessing Dr, this KTVU news report Body found near East Bay trail believed to be of missing runner Philip Kreycik shows vehicles at the bottom entering the gates at Santos Ranch Rd, a private road that connects to the North Ridge trail, which then from Google Maps satellite view goes to the point near where Philip was found near the northern edge of Pleasanton Ridge park where the North Ridge trail seems to abruptly stop.

If they had not had that route on the cell phone, could Philip have been located a lot sooner? Did they assume he would stick to this route even though with the significant heat up there that could possibly lead to that not happening? Or is it possible that he was not there on the initial cursory search of the park or somewhere else and later on he went to under the tree? Those are all good questions and I don't know if anyone has the answers.

Yes, the equipment not working to find him or it not being used where he was were the 2 possibilities. The prelim autopsy indicates a medical emergency, doubt any heat seeking equipment would have changed the outcome for him.

This is interesting, but sadly is an article released in June 2021 but gives hope this will never happen again: "The NEW technology is based on what the researchers describe as an airborne optical sectioning algorithm—it uses the power of a computer to defocus occluding objects such as the tops of trees. The second part of the new device uses thermal imaging to highlight the heat emitted from a warm body. A machine-learning application then determines if the heat signals are those of humans, animals or other sources. The new hardware was then affixed to a standard autonomous drone. The computer in the drone uses both locational positioning to determine where to search and cues from the AOS and thermal sensors. If a possible match is made, the drone automatically moves closer to a target to get a better look. If its sensors indicate a match, it signals the research team giving them the coordinates. In testing their newly outfitted drones over 17 field experiments, the researchers found it was able to locate 38 of 42 people hidden below tree canopies." https://techxplore.com/news/2021-06-autonomous-drone-forests-optical-sectioning.html

 

[NSamuelle]

This is interesting, but sadly is an article released in June 2021 but gives hope this will never happen again: "The NEW technology is based on what the researchers describe as an airborne optical sectioning algorithm—it uses the power of a computer to defocus occluding objects such as the tops of trees. The second part of the new device uses thermal imaging to highlight the heat emitted from a warm body. A machine-learning application then determines if the heat signals are those of humans, animals or other sources. The new hardware was then affixed to a standard autonomous drone. The computer in the drone uses both locational positioning to determine where to search and cues from the AOS and thermal sensors. If a possible match is made, the drone automatically moves closer to a target to get a better look. If its sensors indicate a match, it signals the research team giving them the coordinates. In testing their newly outfitted drones over 17 field experiments, the researchers found it was able to locate 38 of 42 people hidden below tree canopies." https://techxplore.com/news/2021-06-autonomous-drone-forests-optical-sectioning.html

Better tech probably could’ve found him. Bodies sometimes become hyperthermic after death rather than cooling immediately, and the temperatures in the days after he went missing were significantly cooler.

 

[Deleted member 222031]

This is interesting, but sadly is an article released in June 2021 but gives hope this will never happen again: "The NEW technology is based on what the researchers describe as an airborne optical sectioning algorithm—it uses the power of a computer to defocus occluding objects such as the tops of trees. The second part of the new device uses thermal imaging to highlight the heat emitted from a warm body. A machine-learning application then determines if the heat signals are those of humans, animals or other sources. The new hardware was then affixed to a standard autonomous drone. The computer in the drone uses both locational positioning to determine where to search and cues from the AOS and thermal sensors. If a possible match is made, the drone automatically moves closer to a target to get a better look. If its sensors indicate a match, it signals the research team giving them the coordinates. In testing their newly outfitted drones over 17 field experiments, the researchers found it was able to locate 38 of 42 people hidden below tree canopies." https://techxplore.com/news/2021-06-autonomous-drone-forests-optical-sectioning.html

Exciting tech and possibilities. Looks promising. But it detected LIVING people.

Seems like a low-tech cadaver dog would have had more success if allowed to roam and wear something to carry a signal to a SAR team upon detection. Having to search with a human handler would not be as efficient for covering a large wilderness area.

Just my 2 cents.

 

[Normancita]

I wonder if having a beer the night before played into his level of dehydration? Especially if he doesn’t typically drink.

Couple that with the fact that he didn’t bring water along with him on his run the next day. Seems like a perfect storm.

I hope all runners learn from this!

 

[NSamuelle]

I wonder if having a beer the night before played into his level of dehydration? Especially if he doesn’t typically drink.

Couple that with the fact that he didn’t bring water along with him on his run the next day. Seems like a perfect storm.

I hope all runners learn from this!

I’m not shaming him, but I think alcohol would have at least a *small* effect that can unfortunately become exponential instead of linear under dire enough conditions. His running partner did not know if he drank, so I imagine drinking alcohol was not typical practice for him. He had very low body fat. I’m not suggesting he was hungover in the least after only one beer, but his net hydration level was probably a bit less than it could have been.

 

[aim4thestars]

I’m not shaming him, but I think alcohol would have at least a *small* effect that can unfortunately become exponential instead of linear under dire enough conditions. His running partner did not know if he drank, so I imagine drinking alcohol was not typical practice for him. He had very low body fat. I’m not suggesting he was hungover in the least after only one beer, but his net hydration level was probably a bit less than it could have been.

Yes, alcohol is a diuretic and therefore dehydrating. However, it is impossible to know its effect on hydration level without several other key factors, including hydration level prior to drinking (less hydration while drinking results in less of a diuretic effect) and hydration following consumption. Full rehydration to counteract a mild dehydration can occur within a matter of minutes to hours following water consumption (Dehydration: Causes & Symptoms, https://www.medicinenet.com/how_long_does_it_take_to_rehydrate/article.htm)

 

[terracotta1982]

Exciting tech and possibilities. Looks promising. But it detected LIVING people.

Seems like a low-tech cadaver dog would have had more success if allowed to roam and wear something to carry a signal to a SAR team upon detection. Having to search with a human handler would not be as efficient for covering a large wilderness area.

Just my 2 cents.

 

[Beekarina]

Sometimes very fit people have undiagnosed medical conditions too, who knows? I personally doubt very much a single beer (or two) would contribute to a medical event in a person, especially a relatively young, fit person. I'm all for speculation when it might help find a missing person, or solve a crime, but I'm not sure why would we continue picking apart the last hours of PKs life now? He is no longer missing, and there was no crime?

I'm glad the autopsy seems to indicate no foul play. I never thought that seemed remotely likely, but am relieved for his family and friends as that sort of investigation would only make things more painful.

 

[happyday]

Sometimes very fit people have undiagnosed medical conditions too, who knows? I personally doubt very much a single beer (or two) would contribute to a medical event in a person, especially a relatively young, fit person. I'm all for speculation when it might help find a missing person, or solve a crime, but I'm not sure why would we continue picking apart the last hours of PKs life now? He is no longer missing, and there was no crime?

I'm glad the autopsy seems to indicate no foul play. I never thought that seemed remotely likely, but am relieved for his family and friends as that sort of investigation would only make things more painful.

I couldn’t agree more. I’m troubled by the criticizing of SAR efforts, the equipment used, PK drinking a beer the day before… None of this matters IMO. A very fit person had a medical event while on a run on a hot day. No foul play. Fortunately he was found—many times missing people outdoors never are found. The SAR efforts worked well here, and I believe he was probably deceased before he was even reported missing. So although finding him as early as possible is of course better for the family, it wouldn’t have saved him. I applaud all efforts to find him, and I hope the family can now heal.

 

[MrsEmmaPeel]

@happyday and @Beekarina, I agree wholeheartedly. There could be a million small occurrences of chance contributing to this tragedy along with the temperatures. But when I think of PK being found, I am more than amazed. I listen to enough true crime podcasts about vanished people who are never found to appreciate the diligence of PK's friends and community in searching for him. Life is hard, dangerous, and unfair. But sometimes there are small miracles.

I, for one, feel guilty about my speculations early on. This is a bit of an anomaly for WS: a disappearance brought on by the mistakes of the disappeared individual. No foul play. No willful negligence or misconduct by LE. Just death. And that my friends, is part of the nature of living.

 

[Vacajoe]

The world is safer than many think (he wasn’t kidnapped or murdered), people are better than many think (he didn’t walk away and abandon his family), and life is more tenuous than we ALL think (sometimes, life just slips away)…

This event is a great example of how difficult SAR is, but that faith and tenacity are often what makes the difference in missing persons cases.

 

[Deleted member 222031]

The world is safer than many think (he wasn’t kidnapped or murdered), people are better than many think (he didn’t walk away and abandon his family), and life is more tenuous than we ALL think (sometimes, life just slips away)…

This event is a great example of how difficult SAR is, but that faith and tenacity are often what makes the difference in missing persons cases.

All so true. Well said.

 

[Hobgoblinmarket]

To think people were making assumptions about sexual orientation and fidelity based on him and his running buddy using more than a few words to text each other. Some of us do know men who can piece together a few sentences at a time, shocking.

Or that his running buddy was somehow responsible, all because he was bringing publicity so more people could search to find this man.

Good for those who kept searching. Who knows how many other crimes discussed here are the same-no crime at all, but the missing person is just never found.

 

[Essbee]

it doesn’t carry far unless you have the wind. We found him because of the wind conditions more than anything else. Even then it took a repetitive process to narrow in the location. About 5min to get from 100’ away uphill to 5’ away, which is about what it took to physically see him. The search teams that got within 200-300’ were all downwind and downhill through foliage and around the side of a hill.

Runspired, has there been any comment by K9 SAR handlers about whether a cadaver-trained dog would have typically been able to find Philip once he was deceased? My assumption was that they would be able to alert to and find a deceased victim if present. It is pretty disappointing that they could not. Sure, the wind could have blown a certain direction, but I guess I would have assumed that they would have taken dogs all around in different areas of the park, and eventually they would have caught the scent and be able to track it.

 

[mlhenn]

Sometimes very fit people have undiagnosed medical conditions too, who knows? I personally doubt very much a single beer (or two) would contribute to a medical event in a person, especially a relatively young, fit person. I'm all for speculation when it might help find a missing person, or solve a crime, but I'm not sure why would we continue picking apart the last hours of PKs life now? He is no longer missing, and there was no crime?

I'm glad the autopsy seems to indicate no foul play. I never thought that seemed remotely likely, but am relieved for his family and friends as that sort of investigation would only make things more painful.

I couldn’t agree more. I’m troubled by the criticizing of SAR efforts, the equipment used, PK drinking a beer the day before… None of this matters IMO. A very fit person had a medical event while on a run on a hot day. No foul play. Fortunately he was found—many times missing people outdoors never are found. The SAR efforts worked well here, and I believe he was probably deceased before he was even reported missing. So although finding him as early as possible is of course better for the family, it wouldn’t have saved him. I applaud all efforts to find him, and I hope the family can now heal.

@happyday and @Beekarina, I agree wholeheartedly. There could be a million small occurrences of chance contributing to this tragedy along with the temperatures. But when I think of PK being found, I am more than amazed. I listen to enough true crime podcasts about vanished people who are never found to appreciate the diligence of PK's friends and community in searching for him. Life is hard, dangerous, and unfair. But sometimes there are small miracles.

I, for one, feel guilty about my speculations early on. This is a bit of an anomaly for WS: a disappearance brought on by the mistakes of the disappeared individual. No foul play. No willful negligence or misconduct by LE. Just death. And that my friends, is part of the nature of living.

I want to thank you three for posting. I wanted to post something similar but was struggling on how to do so without coming off rude.
Each of your posts were well stated.

 

[Beekarina]

@happyday and @Beekarina

I, for one, feel guilty about my speculations early on. This is a bit of an anomaly for WS: a disappearance brought on by the mistakes of the disappeared individual. No foul play. No willful negligence or misconduct by LE. Just death. And that my friends, is part of the nature of living.

It is an anomaly. I do not feel guilty for thinking PK may have disappeared voluntarily, since I know people sometimes feel they have no choice. Life can be really hard, and you just never really know what anyone struggles with. I do feel bad for anything I posted that was hurtful or disrespectful.

 

[Andreee]

To think people were making assumptions about sexual orientation and fidelity based on him and his running buddy using more than a few words to text each other. Some of us do know men who can piece together a few sentences at a time, shocking.

Or that his running buddy was somehow responsible, all because he was bringing publicity so more people could search to find this man.

Good for those who kept searching. Who knows how many other crimes discussed here are the same-no crime at all, but the missing person is just never found.

I too did not like the assumptions made on this thread and generalizations, such as looks or re. so-called 'flowery' speech indicating this or that; or unwarranted accusations against a pal.

 

[ElizabethAnne]

The closest I could find to a map of the official law enforcement SAR efforts was one shown at the end of one of the press conferences

at time 12:37 where the cameras quickly zoomed into the map. If you freeze it at 12:52 that is the closest view that I can see where it shows the northern section of Pleasanton Ridge Regional park. It looks like the area where Philip was found was in a pale blue color. There were thick lines it looks like in the vicinity, but I don't know what each color means. Does anyone know how these maps work and what the color coding means, specifically what two dark double blue lines means?

 

[NSamuelle]

The closest I could find to a map of the official law enforcement SAR efforts was one shown at the end of one of the press conferences

at time 12:37 where the cameras quickly zoomed into the map. If you freeze it at 12:52 that is the closest view that I can see where it shows the northern section of Pleasanton Ridge Regional park. It looks like the area where Philip was found was in a pale blue color. There were thick lines it looks like in the vicinity, but I don't know what each color means. Does anyone know how these maps work and what the color coding means, specifically what two dark double blue lines means?

I put the two maps (where body was found plus police map) together, but the police map doesn’t even indicate the location of the body so you have to make a visual guess based on other landmarks like the shopping center and Moller Ranch staging area that looks like a guitar head. It doesn’t look like the area was heavily covered except by the tip of the light blue loop. My best guess is that the body was slightly above the light blue loop. Use the line underneath the shopping center in both maps as a horizontal reference. It looks like the body was almost exactly due west of that line.

For other landmarks, on both maps, there’s a feature that looks like a toolbox above Diablo Canyon Road.