Melting Calif. snow leads to massive new search for missing actor
The snow is finally melting on the slopes of Mount Baldy, the treacherous California mountain that marks the last known location of British actor Julian Sands.
After the historic storms of this past winter, the changing seasons enabled a massive search crew to renew its efforts to find the actor, who disappeared on the mountainside in January.
“Saturday’s search included over 80 Search and Rescue volunteers, deputies, and staff,” the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department said yesterday in a news release of this weekend’s search. “Their efforts were supported by two helicopters, and drone crews.”
The effort was unsuccessful, and authorities reported that some parts of the mountain remain out of reach.
“Despite the recent warmer weather, portions of the mountain remain inaccessible due to extreme alpine conditions,” the sheriff’s department said. “Multiple areas include steep terrain and ravines, which still have 10 plus feet of ice and snow.”
The effort marks the eighth search specifically for Sands since his disappearance on the evening of Jan. 13.
The actor was reported missing at 7:30 p.m. that day after hiking the Baldy Bowl Trail in San Bernardino County, about 30 miles from Los Angeles. The actor’s car was located on the mountain four days into the search. Sands’ son Henry Sands joined the search by retracing the route he took with an experienced climber, with no success.
Walter McBride/Corbis via Getty Images
The 65-year-old actor, known for his roles in “Leaving Las Vegas,” “A Room With a View” and “24,” is reportedly a dedicated hiker and lives in the North Hollywood area.
Towering 10,000 feet over Los Angeles, Baldy has been described as one of the deadliest mountains in the United States, and claimed dozens of lives over the years. A combination of inexperience, challenging terrain and spotty cell service led to 19 rescues and at least two deaths on its steep, winding trails last winter.
“There’s a lot of very skilled, well-equipped people that go to Mount Baldy that know the risks,” Eric Vetere, commander of West Valley Search and Rescue, told SFGATE earlier this year. “[There are] also folks that go to Mount Baldy in an attempt to learn those things. It’s an unforgiving mountain to learn those skills on.”
“Mr. Sands’ missing person case remains active and search efforts will continue in a limited capacity,” the sheriff’s department wrote. Anyone with additional information is asked to call Detective B. Meelker with the Fontana Station at 909-356-6710.
Source: SFGATE
