Searchers Find Man Who Left Care Facility
A 64-year-old man who got lost when he wandered from his Ojai residential care facility was found Sunday in a wooded ravine after spending a chilly night outdoors, officials said.
Dennis “Steve” Gertsman sustained a minor head injury and was “cold and lethargic” when he was found about 8:30 a.m. by a Ventura County Sheriff’s Department search-and-rescue team, said Senior Deputy Julie Smith. Fifty rescue workers took part in the search.
Gertsman, wearing a purple jogging suit and an identification tag, walked out of the Casa Blanca Residential Care Facility on Rockaway Road about 6 p.m. Saturday, Smith said. Overnight temperatures had dipped into the high 40s.
He was taken to Ojai Valley Community Hospital, where he was treated and released.
The facility has a locked gate, but employees told investigators it does not always close properly, Smith said.
More to Read
Sign up for Essential California
The most important California stories and recommendations in your inbox every morning.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
