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| Thread ID: 101753 | 2009-07-26 00:20:00 | News from Hell (Palm Springs, California) | SurferJoe46 (51) | PC World Chat |
| Post ID | Timestamp | Content | User | ||
| 795210 | 2009-07-26 00:20:00 | It's not record-breaking, but it has caught a few unprepared people and created a very high electricity demand: PALM SPRINGS - A helicopter crew searching for an overdue hiker found his body today on steep, rocky terrain near a network of trails above Palm Springs, according to police and coroner's officials. "It was about 700 feet (213.4 m) above sea level, not too far above the valley floor,'' said Palm Springs police Lt. Dennis Graham, who helped supervise recovery of the man's body. "It was steep and inaccessible. They littered out the remains by helicopter.'' The helicopter crew was working in tandem with volunteers on foot when they spotted the body about 11:30 a.m. in the Advertisement vicinity of the Skyline Trail, according to police. The hiker was reported overdue Saturday night after he and some friends set out on the Lyken Trail, one of several paths that intersect with the popular Skyline Trail. He was last seen about 6:30 a.m. Saturday, and his friends waited at his car until sundown before reporting him missing, according to police. Palm Springs police activated a network of search-and-rescue volunteers Saturday night. But they had to delay their efforts until first light today due to darkness and dangerous conditions, according to Graham. "Desert trails out of the valley floor can be treacherous, even for experienced hikers,'' Graham said in a prepared statement this afternoon. "Local trails are steep and difficult to follow in many areas. They are composed almost entirely of rock and loose shale. They offer virtually no shade and water sources are scarce or nonexistent. Because of the excessive heat of recent days, it is advisable to stay off area trails until temperatures decline.'' Afternoon temperatures in Palm Springs today peaked above 110 degrees (43.3C), according to the National Weather Service. Whether intense heat had anything to do with the hiker's death will be determined by the coroner. Either way, volunteers who searched today worked in less than ideal conditions. The heat in Riverside County desert areas had already proved dangerous this weekend. On Saturday, the California Highway Patrol, Cal Fire and the Border Patrol rescued nine people believed to be illegal immigrants who spent three days in blistering desert heat with little or no water. They said they had been abandoned by a smuggler. Six of the people were determined to be illegal aliens and deported. The other three were so overcome by heat and dehydration they were flown by helicopter to desert hospitals and two of them were considered to be in critical condition at the time, according to Cal Fire. Their citizen status remained unconfirmed by authorities, and an update on their medical conditions was not available today. |
SurferJoe46 (51) | ||
| 795211 | 2009-07-26 05:22:00 | They littered out the remains by helicopter: And scattered to the four winds? :( |
WalOne (4202) | ||
| 795212 | 2009-07-26 05:59:00 | That's US-lingo for "used a Stokes stretcher and hauled the body out by helicopter". | SurferJoe46 (51) | ||
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