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I work with lots of people with Alzheimer's disease. Of course, I haven't a clue about this particular situation - but he could have been functioning perfectly well (for someone with memory problems) prior to this incident.
Persons with Alzheimer's do not handle change well, so maybe this was the first time in a while that she was gone from the home or gone for a longer period of time. This time, the stress of her being gone, may have sent him over the edge. I suspect the family did not have a clue how he would react to his wife being gone.
He called his sister to say he was coming to visit her - I think he didn't want to be alone, or he was scared. Persons with Alzheimer's depend on family caregivers to give them a sense of safety and knowing that everything is OK.
It also says he was recently diagnosed, so he probably was doing pretty well, but something about his wife leaving, triggered the need to GO! Many people with dementia live alone, much farther along in the disease and they do OK, as long as nothing changes. But when it does change, look out!
The fact that he traveled so far and in such odd directions is not surprising at all. The more he travelled the more stressful it all became and stress precipitates confusion. So, the more he travelled to unfamiliar places, the more stress and upset he felt and the more stressed he was, the more confused he was. That's why he ran out of gas - he couldn't process that he needed to get gas for the car. It's all very typical for someone with Alzheimer's disease who is under stressful conditions
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 Gayle
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