The Scoop: There’s seldom a dull moment here
In Warren County, you are virtually assured of one thing: You don’t have to travel far to find news.
The story everyone is following this week is the disappearance of local physician Dr. Kumar. Details still remain sketchy about what has really happened to Kumar, but that hasn’t stopped the local rumors from circulating.
The situation has the makings of a terrible tragedy. If one of our prominent and respected local doctors has lost his life in the Collins River, then our community is a worse place for it. I certainly hope that didn’t happen earlier this week.
Dr. Kumar is one of those people I call a great man. In this day when the health care industry is driven by the bottom line and insurance companies, it’s refreshing to find a doctor who will see patients without insurance, or let them pay what they can. That’s just not something which happens in today’s medical world.
But Dr. Kumar was different. He was a man who opened a place called the House of Hope because he wanted to help others any way possible. He wanted to make a positive impact.
In discussing Dr. Kumar’s disappearance over the last three days, I’ve found some people are reluctant to talk about the doctor in the past tense. A number of folks around these parts aren’t convinced Dr. Kumar jumped into the Collins River at all. I’ve heard some say the only place he jumped Tuesday was on the first flight out of the country.
They say Dr. Kumar is probably sipping a martini right about now. He’s probably enjoying the sand on some beach in Rio, they say. Dr. Kumar surely didn’t kill himself. I’ve heard people say Dr. Kumar was a man who would never do that.
I say all that talk is a little bit inappropriate. I’m certainly not going to sit here and question Dr. Kumar’s whereabouts. If a lady said he was going to kill himself by jumping into the Collins River, then I believe he did it.
The evidence indicates Dr. Kumar probably jumped in the river, was immediately paralyzed by the freezing temperatures, and began to fight for his life. Based on the evidence, this was quite a struggle because the sweater Dr. Kumar was wearing was hurled off his back.
In addition to finding Dr. Kumar’s sweater in the water, investigators only discovered one set of footprints leading down to the river — and no footprints coming back. That all points to the fact Dr. Kumar walked down to the river and didn’t return. If he did return, there would be footprints indicating that fact.
There’s just not much evidence right now to say whether Dr. Kumar is dead or alive. And we’ve got to remember we’re talking about a man’s life.
The bottom line is none of us really knows what has happened to Dr. Kumar. As it stands, his case is being treated as a missing person report and that sounds like the way to go.
I am pleased to hear local authorities aren’t ruling anything out. From what I’ve heard, nothing should be ruled out.
There’s the outside chance we may never know what happened to Dr. Kumar. There’s also the more somber realization that his body may be recovered from the river today or in the days to follow. That’s a sight none of us would like to see.
As for the rumors, I’m sure they are going to continue to circulate. Since no one saw Dr. Kumar jump into the river, and since his body has yet to be recovered, there are always going to be questions. Maybe the coming days and weeks will produce some answers.
(James Clark is editor of the Standard. He can be reached at 473-2191 or by e-mail at [email protected].)