On Sept. 4, members of the China Lake Mountain Rescue Group (CLMRG) was called to assist Santa Barbara County on a search for a missing hiker. The search was for 29 year old, Tim Sgrignoli. Tim and his girlfriend were hiking in the wilderness area of Gaviota Peak on Trespass Trail on Sunday, Sept. 3, when the girlfriend began to have heat related issues. Tim left his girlfriend to get help and left the cellphone with her. She was able to move to a spot with cellphone reception and was rescued, but Tim was now missing. Temperatures were 114 degrees on Sunday.
On Sept. 6, the team assisted on a search on Cucamonga Peak for a missing hiker. The search was for 45 year old Carlos Monay Garcia. He and his wife were hiking Cucamonga Peak. Just above Cucamonga Pass, Carlos decided he could not continue, so he stopped to rest. The wife continued to the summit. On her descent she did not find Carlos. Another couple had stopped and talked to Carlos prior to continuing to the summit where they met up with the wife. So sometime between talking to the couple and the wife descending, Carlos wandered off. CLMRG sent a second team on Sept. 17 to assist in the ongoing search.
On Sept. 14, the team was requested to assist Inyo County in a search for a 75 year old missing hiker on Mt. Whitney. This hiker was a solo hiker and was reported missing after a day hike on Sept. 12.
On Sept. 20, the team was called to search for a missing 73 year old hiker in the Black Mountain area in Kern County.
In all of the searches, the missing hikers were by themselves with no cell phone or other means to request help. The hiker in Santa Barbara County was found deceased, and the hiker on Cucamonga Peak is still missing. The hikers on Mt. Whitney and Black Mountain were both found OK.
It is important to remember to bring proper equipment and plenty of food and water when hiking. And if possible not to separate from your hiking partners, especially if they are getting tired.
CLMRG is an all-volunteer, non-profit organization, which provides search, and rescue services on an on-call basis. It is part of the Kern County Sheriff Department, and is a member of the Mountain Rescue Association (MRA). The primary mission of the China Lake Mountain Rescue Group is search and rescue of lost or injured persons, any season of the year, in the mountains and desert or in any type of wilderness terrain. Our primary area of response is Kern County and the Eastern Sierra of Inyo and Mono Counties in California, but we can go any place in the world, as needed.
A secondary mission of CLMRG is to provide wilderness safety education to members of our Ridgecrest, CA community.
To find out more about CLMRG or make a donation to the team, visit their website at www.clmrg.org.
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