The strange story began Sunday afternoon, around 4:30 PM, when the Benton County Sheriff's Office received a call about a naked man walking on the BNSF railroad tracks near McNary Dam on the WA Side.
Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad officials were alerted, and a crew spotted the man walking on the tracks in the distance, but when Deputies arrived they were unable to locate him, due to growing darkness. Life Flight helicopter search also failed to turn up any trace of the man.
Then, Monday morning around 5:30 AM, Deputies got a call from a citizen reporting a naked man walking along Owen's Road near SR 397, which is the southern edge of Kennewick.
As Deputies were en route, they were informed that another driver had picked up the man and taken him to Trios Southridge ER.
Deputies said the man gave them rather limited information, but they were able to determine the previous night he'd been out, and was obviously under a state of intoxication either from alcohol, drugs, or both. The man said he'd started walking from the Circle K in Umatilla into Benton County, then near McNary Dam decided to take his clothes off and use the railroad tracks to walk on. This picture shows where he was eventually picked up. He said he'd wandered through some farmers fields before reaching the road.
Deputies did not say how far he traveled before finally reaching SR 397 and Owens, but if you drive the distance, it's at least 31 miles. The photo in our story shows how far he traveled.
Other than a case of severe to moderate frostbite to areas of his feet, the man was unharmed. His name was not released, and the investigation continues.