Missing man with Alzheimer’s found dead in rural SLO

February 2, 2017

A search and rescue team found the dead body of a missing 75-year-old San Luis Obispo man who had Alzheimers on Wednesday. Rich Korsgaard had been missing since Sunday.

Around 10 a.m., search and rescue personnel from Kern County found his body at the base of a steep, heavily wooded ravine about a quarter mile northwest of Balm Ridge Court, according to the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office. The area where Korsgaard’s body was found is south of San Luis Obispo and about one to two miles from the deceased man’s home on Balm Ridge Way.

Sheriff’s officials say there is no evidence of criminal activity, nor were there any suspicious circumstances associated with Korsgaard’s death. Korsgaard’s cause of death has yet to be determined.

Prior to going missing, Korsgaard was last seen around 2 p.m. on Sunday when he was walking near his home in the 6000 block of Balm Ridge Way. The sheriff’s office launched a search later Sunday.

Search and rescue personnel from Santa Barbara, Ventura, Los Angeles, Monterey, Fresno, Tulare and Kern counties worked with SLO County deputies, detectives and K-9s, as well as the sheriff’s dive team. Both a sheriff’s helicopter and a CHP helicopter provided assistance from the air.