The hunt for missing actor Julian Sands, who vanished 13 days ago in Southern California’s San Gabriel Mountains, has reportedly changed methods, according to the police.
The 65-year-old Sands went missing on January 13 while trekking around a snow-covered Mount Baldy. Sands is the star of numerous Oscar-nominated movies, including A Room with a View.
After cell phone pings indicated that Sands was on a well-traveled track, search and rescue teams started looking for him approximately a mile southwest of the mountain’s summit. But the attempts have been put on hold because of strong gusts and avalanche dangers.
The search will continue “by air only,” the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Office stated on Wednesday. RECCO equipment, which can identify “reflective material, devices, and, in some circumstances, credit cards,” will be used.
Just a day before, personnel had changed their strategy in order to find another missing hiker. One day after he was reported missing, 75-year-old Jin Chung of Los Angeles was located; police stated he had weather-related and leg injuries.
Mt. Baldy is just around 40 miles northeast of Los Angeles, yet it has a reputation for having rather chilly and damp winters. In the last week, the nightly lows in the area have reached 29 degrees.
Since 2017, 233 operations by search and rescue teams have been made on Mount Baldy, the highest point in the San Gabriel Mountains, with eight fatalities.
The increased fatality rate at Mt. Baldy is a result of both environmental exposure and falls, according to police in a search update earlier this week. Since 2017, there have been 233 missions by search and rescue teams on Mount Baldy, with eight fatalities.
The death of a member of the search and rescue team on the mountain prompted former sheriff John McMahon to speak with congressional representatives about expanding weather restrictions in 2019.
Mt. Baldy is an unincorporated community that, like the San Gabriel area surrounding it, is managed by the Department of Agriculture and United States Forest Service.
After going on a hike, actor Julian Sands from “A Room With a View” has vanished.
Because of “deficits in USFS staffing, resources, and funds,” San Bernardino County’s sheriff hinted in a statement that his jurisdiction couldn’t provide extra personnel to the hunt for Sands.
The USFS needs additional cash, according to the office, to develop a permit system for local hikers and increase wilderness education. The office said it was collaborating with legislators to try to acquire this funding.
NPR’s request for more information was not immediately answered by Sands representatives.
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The North Hollywood-based actor with English ancestry is best remembered for his role in the 1985 British romantic comedy A Room with a View.
He played the lead in movies including Warlock, Arachnophobia, Leaving Las Vegas, Boxing Helena, and The Killing Fields during the 1980s and 1990s.
He has proceeded to make several cameo appearances in recent years, in everything from critically acclaimed blockbusters to low-budget indies.
In response to a question from The Guardian in 2020 about his greatest joy, Sands mentioned recreation rather than performing.