Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor MOUNTAINS - Searches are continuing their efforts Wednesday in locating a 59-year-old Northern California woman who was swept away in the San Gabriel River March 9.
Terrain and the swiftness of the river in certain locations makes the effort more difficult for searchers. Tuesday was spent with searchers traversing the river to inspect areas obscured by debris, according to deputy Bommarito, search and rescue coordinator with the San Dimas Mountain Rescue Team. “We haven’t stopped yet. We’re not going to stop. We’re going to keep pushing through with different missions,” Bommarito told SGV CityWatch. Searchers are continuing to focus on an area from the point last seen, which is the Bridge to Nowhere, south to San Gabriel Reservoir. However, Bommarito doesn’t believe at this time that the hiker traveled as far as the reservoir. If she did make it to the reservoir, the hiker would have to travel in one to two miles of shallow water: anywhere from 6 inches to one foot deep, Bommarito told SGV CityWatch. Depending on availability, search teams may range from as few as six to as many as 30 per day, with teams from San Dimas, Sierra Madre, Altadena, Malibu and Avalon, Bommarito said. From the air, the Sheriff’s Department has deployed their Air Rescue 5 helicopter and have had drones from the Sheriff’s Special Enforcement Bureau searching the river. The trail leading to the Bridge to Nowhere is a roughly 10-mile hike with as many as four to five river crossings. Some crossings take hikers through ankle-deep water in late spring or early summer. Where the missing hiker tried to cross features water that can be waist deep or chest high, Bommarito told SGV CityWatch. Eyewitnesses who crossed before and after the missing hiker and her friends told searchers that the water was waist high for them Saturday, Bommarito told SGV CityWatch. Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor MOUNTAINS - Hazmat crews with the Los Angeles County Fire Department and Los Angeles County Sheriff’s detectives are investigating the scene where a dead body was found inside of a van Monday night. First responders were called to the area of Mount Baldy Road near Shinn Road around 10:37 p.m. Monday March 11. It is not immediately clear why hazmat investigators were called to the scene, but they remained at the location and cleared the scene Around 3:17 a.m. Investigators returned just before 5 a.m. and left a location around 8:35 a.m., according to Los Angeles County Fire Department dispatch logs. Detective with the Sheriff’s Homicide Bureau were called to investigate the death, according to Lt. Elisabeth Sachs of the Sheriff’s San Dimas Station. It is not immediately clear how long the body may have been inside the van at that location, nor is it immediately clear how the person died. Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor SAN GABRIEL MOUNTAINS - Search and rescue teams will continue looking for a female hiker Sunday who reportedly slipped and fell into the San Gabriel River March 9.
The search was paused Saturday due to diminishing sunlight. Crews will be back at sunrise March 10, according to Lt. Elisabeth Sachs of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s San Dimas station. First responders were sent to Camp Bonita Road and Heaton Flats near the Bridge to Nowhere around 10 a.m. March 9. The victim, only described as a female, may have attempted a river crossing and slipped. Deputies spent Saturday attempting to notify the victim’s family, Sachs told SGV CityWatch. Search and rescue crews will once again search by foot and will have more air support Sunday. Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor MOUNTAINS - The driver of a Ford Ranger had little choice but to wait for help to somehow find her as she lay injured after crashing down 250 over Mt. Baldy Road one week ago.
Authorities said the driver, only described as a middle-aged woman, swerved to avoid striking a deer. She suffered a fractured ankle and was unable to call for help due to a lack of cellphone reception. The twisted Ford Ranger could not be seen from the roadway. “In this person’s case, she had enough supplies to survive in her pickup for four nights before help arrived,” according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s San Dimas Station in a social media statement. A passing hiker set on finding new fishing spots heard the woman’s cries for help and contacted first responders. The San Dimas Mountain Rescue Team rappelled down to the twisted wreck, pulled the woman free and helped package her for air transport to Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center. “We can’t stress this enough: if you plan on traveling on a mountain road this winter, bring extra supplies. It never hurts to have food, water, a sleeping bag, and extra layers on hand in the event of an emergency,” according to the Sheriff’s San Dimas Station. Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor MOUNTAINS - Hikers reportedly stumbled upon a crash scene and a driver was saved after spending three frigid days inside the twisted wreck along Mt. Baldy Road Sunday.
The driver, only described as a middle-aged woman, was apparently alert enough to tell first responders that she had crashed and remained in her vehicle since Wednesday. She was taken by helicopter to Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center for further treatment, according to Lt. Philpot of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s San Dimas Station. The Ford Ranger crash happen along about Mt. Baldy Road north of Shinn Road. First responders were called to the scene around 12:30 p.m. A Los Angeles County fire engine was in the general area when the call was made, and firefighters were very quickly on scene, Philpot told SGV CityWatch. The driver was pulled from the vehicle, which was estimated to be 100 feet down from the roadway, according to the California Highway Patrol. The extent of injuries to the driver is unclear. Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor MOUNTAINS - Authorities recently announced that a hiker missing since July 1 in the mountains above the Altadena area was found dead one week after he was reported missing.
Albert Baer Zisook, 65, was found on Bear Canyon Trail near Mt. Lowe Road, according to the County of Los Angeles Department of Medical Examiner. His cause of death has been deferred, pending additional investigation. Zisook was reported missing to the Los Angeles Police Department. He was last seen July 1 at 6 a.m. near Chaney Trail and Loma Alta Drive in Altadena. Zisook's family noted that he was an avid hiker. "After many days of searching, with more than a thousand man-hours from multiple search & rescue teams, our operation concluded. However, the outcome was not as hoped. Our heartfelt condolences to the family of Albert Zisook," according to the Altadena Mountain Rescue Team in a written statement. The arduous search led a search team member to sustain serious injuries. Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor MOUNTAINS - A South Pasadena man who set out on a hike July 15 above Monrovia has not returned home, authorities said.
Colin Brian Walker, 53, was las seen on a Monrovia resident’s security camera in the 900 block of Ridgeside Drive heading to a hiking trail around 6:23 a.m. July 15. He has not been heard from since, according to the South Pasadena Police Department. Members of the Sierra Madre Search and Rescue team and the Montrose Search and Rescue Team have been searching by ground. A helicopter has also searched the area. Walker is white, stands 5 feet 11 inches tall and weighs 165 pounds. He was last seen in a gray t-shirt, dark shorts, gray socks, brown boots, a brown hat, carried hiking sticks and a large green backpack. Anyone with information on Walker’s whereabouts is urged to call the South Pasadena Police Department at 626-403-7297. Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor MOUNTAINS - Ground crews continue to make progress on a fire that charred several acres of brush in steep terrain Sunday afternoon.
Hot Shot crews with the US Forest Service and crews with the Los Angeles County Fire Department worked on the ground to construct a containment line. Support came from the air in the form of several water dropping helicopters and a plane dropping red Phos-Chek. The fire is 50 percent contained and has burned roughly 5 acres as of Sunday night. Firefighters were dispatched to Santa Anita Canyon Road well into the steep terrain of the San Gabriel Mountains National Monument just after 3:30 p.m., Sunday, July 2. The steepness and remoteness of the terrain made it a challenge to battle the fire. Incidentally, the Chantry Fire ignited in the burn scar of the Bobcat Fire Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor MOUNTAINS - Investigators are still trying to determine why a driver in a 2015 Chevy Cruz went over the side of Angeles Crest Highway late Tuesday night.
The Chevy Cruz went over the side of Angeles Crest Highway while traveling westbound at mile marker 32.18, June 13. California Highway Patrol officers were dispatched at 8:30 p.m., according to Jonathan Boyd, public information officer for the CHP Altadena station. An investigator believes that the crash happened seven minutes prior to CHP being dispatched. It was not immediately clear how far over the side the Cruz fell, but initially Los Angeles County firefighters believe the vehicle fell more than 300 feet over Angeles Crest. Rescuers traveled down the mountainside to the vehicle and determined that the driver, only described as a Long Beach man, died at the scene, Boyd told SGV CityWatch. It is unclear if alcohol, drugs, or any other factors led to the crash. Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor MOUNTAINS - A hiker said to be in his early 30s died Sunday afternoon after jumping in a stream near Mount Baldy Road.
The hiker and a friend were out near the Barrett Stoddard Truck Trail near Mount Baldy Road when they came upon a stream. The hiker jumped once successfully into the stream and jumped in a second time, but failed to resurface, according to Sgt. Duarte of the Los Angeles county sheriffs San Dimas Station. The friend found the hiker’s body somewhere downstream and attempted CPR. Los Angeles County Fire Department paramedics took over CPR duties, but eventually declared the hiker dead at the scene, Duarte told SGV CityWatch. The hiker was declared deceased at 6:20 p.m., Duarte told SGV CityWatch. |
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