A body found in a vacant lot at the intersection of Spring and Illinois streets on Jan. 17 was identified Monday by Hot Springs police as a missing 18-year-old man from Mountain Pine.
Police said in a news release that an autopsy shows the victim, Darrell Augustus Stipes, died as the result of "accidental hypothermia."
It is the first death a local law enforcement agency has attributed to hypothermia following an outbreak of Arctic air earlier this month. St. Luke's Episcopal Church operated a warming center during the height of the cold weather; at one point last week, 47 people spent the night at the center, and 300 meals were served.
Stipes, whose body was found by a passer-by, was reported as missing to the Garland County Sheriff's Department on Dec. 5 and last seen at Jackson House on Dec. 15.
In the days leading up to the discovery of his body, temperatures plummeted below freezing and remained there for several days.
Cpl. Kirk Zaner said a passer-by spotted what was possibly a deceased person and alerted police on Jan. 17. Stipes' body was later sent to the state crime lab for an autopsy to determine the cause of death and for a positive identification.
A GoFundMe account was set up by Stipes' cousin, asking for $3,500 to cover funeral expenses at https://www.gofundme.com/funeral-expense-for-darrell-stipes.
Local on 01/23/2018