‘Out of gas’ reads final note from man found dead in Death Valley National Park

Record temperatures of up to 50 degrees Celsius had swept through Death Valley National Park during the time David Kelleher went missing.

The body of a man who appeared to be searching for help on foot was found in Death Valley National Park on Tuesday after his car ran out of gas, the National Park Service (NPS) announced.

David Kelleher, 67, was found dead near Zabriskie Point in the national park, considered one of the hottest places in the world during summer. Park authorities said that a heat wave recently swept through the area, causing record temperatures of up to 123 degrees Fahrenheit, or 50 degrees Celsius.

It’s unclear when Kelleher died, but the first sign that the Huntington Beach resident was in trouble came on the morning of June 8, when a park ranger noticed a single vehicle in the parking lot at Zabriskie Point.

Three days later, on the evening of June 11, the same park ranger noticed the abandoned vehicle again and began an investigation.

A crumpled note was found inside the vehicle, reading “Out of gas.”

The car was registered to Kelleher and park rangers learned that he had not been reported missing. A search of records, though, turned up that Kelleher had been issued an off-road driving citation on May 30.

When Kelleher spoke to the park official that day, he mentioned he was running low on gas.

A ground and aerial search of the park, aided by a U.S. Navy VX-31 helicopter, was conducted but was “limited by hot weather,” according to the news release. The Inyo County Sheriff’s Office and Coroner’s Office also responded to the incident.