CALIFORNIA — Gene Penaflor, 72, was discovered by hunters on Saturday, October 12,  after 19 days in the Mendocino National Forest in the Coastal Mountain Range of northwestern California.

The Mendocino National Forest is run by the U.S. Forest Service and has been closed, due to the government shutdown, according to the forest website. 

Penaflor, described on the site as an avid hunter with more than 30 years of wilderness experience, had been hunting with a friend when they became separated on September 24, the report said.

After four days of searching by at least 18 agencies from more than a dozen counties, the official search was suspended because searchers could find no clues to his locations and because storms were coming.

On Saturday, 19 days after Penaflor disappeared, the search was resumed – but it was a group of hunters who heard Penaflor’s cries for help and eventually found him in a canyon in the 53,887-acre Yuki Wilderness area of the national forest.

He told officials he had walked too far away from the road, fell and hit his head, and was knocked unconscious. According to reports, he was able to make fires, kill and eat several squirrels in the area and had a plenty of water supply from a drainage location.