Except that the Kim family had already been hunkered down for 9 days when James Kim set out on foot, and his wife and children were found also on foot after having just set out from their vehicle after 11+ days.
I think at some point, you do have to assume help may not be either looking for you in the right place or able to get to you, and you send someone able-bodied out to seek that help themselves. Ideally, that person is better equipped to withstand the elements than James Jim was... but we don't always get to choose the situations we find ourselves in (though this experience/story has probably made a LOT of families and travellers reevaluate whether they should bring that extra blanket and jacket, etc.
The latest word is that the road the Kim's took was in fact closed -- vandals had unlocked/broken a metal gate that is typically closed this time of year due to the trecherous conditions on the road. (Source:
http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/12/08/mis....ap/index.html)
Here are some good survival tips.