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Peter Skyllberg, Swedish man survived in frozen car at -30C for TWO MONTHS

By Staff K 20/02/2012 11:16:00

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Frozen in: The Swede's car was found covered in 2ft of snow after getting trapped in drifts on December 19

A Swedish man has been pulled barely alive from his snow-covered car having survived on nothing but snow for two months in sub-zero temperatures.

Peter Skyllberg, 44, had eaten nothing but handfuls of snow since December 19 when his car became bogged down in drifts near the town of Umea in northern Sweden.

Pictures of the vehicle's interior show the dashboard and seats covered in ice after temperatures plunged to -30C.

Experts think he went into a kind of human hibernation which slowed down his metabolism and pulled him through the ordeal in what they have described as the 'case of a lifetime'.

Mr Skyllberg had driven off the main road on to forest tracks where his car became stuck fast.

On Friday a passing man on a snowmobile stopped to scrape snow from the windscreen of the vehicle and saw movement inside.

As he recovered in a hospital today details emerged of depression and debts piling up on him and it is thought he might have been trying to take his own life.

Police initially thought he was a nature lover who had become trapped in the snow while on an expedition to photograph elk.

But now it emerges there was a court judgment against him in December because of debts totaling £150,000.

Neighbours of his in the town of Orebro in central Sweden said he had also broken up with his girlfriend and had lost contact with his father and other family members 20 years ago.

'We now have to wait until he is better to try to find out what really was in his mind,' said police officer Ebbe Nyberg.

Mr Skyllberg survived by taking handfuls of snow from the roof of the car.

The only other things found with him were cigarettes and comic books.

'Absolutely incredible that he is alive, in part considering that he hasn’t had any food, but also bearing in mind that it was really cold for a while there after Christmas,' said a member of the emergency services team deployed to rescue him.

The case of Peter Skyllberg is so extraordinary doctors and medical experts are still trying to establish exactly how the 44-year-old survived in such extreme circumstances.

One theory being put forward by Dr Stefan Branth, from Uppsala University, is that Mr Skyllberg's metabolism may have slowed down 'like a bear that hibernates', making it easier to go without food.

But Ulf Segerberg, the chief medical officer at Umea University Hospital, said it was more likely because of the insulation provided by his vehicle.

'It is not possible for humans to hibernate like a bear,' he said.

'In the car, he had very warm clothes, he had a warm sleeping bag, and as the car was snowed under, that would have made it more like an igloo.'

He was emaciated, barely able to move and could barely speak.

'He was at the end of his tether,' said a police spokesman. 'It was doubtful he could have survived one or two more days.'

He was wrapped up in a sleeping bag in the car but he had no other warmth; the fuel had run out long ago as he kept the heater running to try to survive as the thermometer plunged on some nights to -30C.

Pictures also show food wrappers and drink cartons , which suggests he may have had supplies with him for at least some of the time.

Mr Skyllberg is recovering in the intensive care ward at Umea University Hospital where he is being fed liquid proteins.

He has hypothermia and is severely malnourished. He was never registered as missing, for which there is currently no explanation.

Policeman Nyberg added: 'He was in a very poor state when we found him.

He could not speak, just a few broken sentences and the words snow...eat. And he managed to say he hadn’t eaten anything since December.'

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Comments (5 posted)

Utility Trucks 27/02/2012 05:42:38

It is really an miracle that an person surviving in such an sever cold and that also in his car for 2 months without having any food and i hope he is not in critical condition.

Zezo 03/03/2012 14:45:12

You have my deepest sphtaymy, im revising at home, and its just been announced that the drive needs shoveling. Why? so it looks nice and neat for the neighbors to get jealous over? No im revising, one of my two siblings who are out playing in the snow can do it!

Mark 03/03/2012 16:17:51

A broom?! I'd say buy a shovel, but then it will NEVER snow again. Thankfully, I've got a man who rhnautes my car when it needs it. But we haven't had eleventy feet of snow here in YEARS, so you know. It's just eleventy inches.

joe 05/03/2012 23:27:35

Nick was in Houston for the entire snow storm and after. So I was alone in cinlraeg off both cars and digging out our driveway. Ugh. And, um I also did the digging in my pjs with boots and my down jacket. But we have a shovel.: )Don't ask me how to work the snowblower though. I have no idea.

Talhaa 06/03/2012 00:12:03

oi! i live in northern ariifocnla, so snow is pretty much a voluntary experience, however rain is a regular thing. and it's the same exact thing, people lose their minds as soon as the water comes from the sky. people making left turns in front of you where you have to slam your breaks on to not hit them, people driving FASTER than when it's dry and my personal favorite is the people who have a car the color of a storm and they refuse to turn their headlights on in the day time.