Florida man freezes to death during Michigan visit

A 22-year-old Florida man appears to have frozen to death in Van Buren County while sleeping in his car, police said.

Another 22-year-old Florida man who was in the car with the victim is in critical condition, according to the Van Buren County Sheriff's Office.

Officials said deputies were called at about 11:30 p.m. Monday to the 8000 block of County Road 215 in Grand Junction to respond to a report of two men sleeping in a car. Grand Junction is about 10 miles east of South Haven and about 185 miles west of Detroit.

Deputies found the body of one man dead in the driver's seat, police said. The second man was unresponsive but still breathing.

Authorities airlifted the man to a hospital.

Investigators believe the two men, who are from Wimauma, Fla., which is south of Tampa, were in the area visiting friends and drove into a field where the vehicle became stuck, the sheriff's office said.

It appears the two men tried to free the vehicle, but were unsuccessful, police said.

Investigators are still waiting for the results of an autopsy, but said the extreme cold may have been a factor in the death.

cramirez@detroitnews.com

Twitter: @CharlesERamirez