An overnight search for a missing hiker in Loma Mar ended with relief as the San Mateo County Sheriff's Office volunteers located her on Sunday morning. The woman, who was part of a hiking party, had set off alone last Saturday afternoon along Old Haul Rd. and hadn't returned by nightfall, prompting an emergency response, the San Mateo County Sheriff's Office reported.
Concern grew as the temperatures dropped, and darkness enveloped the region's dense forest. After all, the personal initiative to search by the woman's companions yielded no results. They reached out to authorities for help. The San Mateo County Sheriff's deputies enlisted an Unmanned Aircraft System and a California Highway Patrol helicopter in the initial search, but to no avail. This led to the dispatch of the Sheriff's Office Emergency Services Bureau (ESB), a volunteer unit with search and rescue capabilities.
It wasn't until approximately 3:30 a.m. on Sunday that the breakthrough came. The team of 25 volunteers heard the missing hiker's response to their calls and found her some 500 yards downhill from Old Haul Rd., alongside Pescadero Creek, the San Mateo County Sheriff's post detailed. Despite being cold and exhausted, the woman was fortunately uninjured.
The extraction of the hiker required considerable effort. Due to the terrain, it took nearly an hour to carry out. Paramedics from American Medical Response then evaluated her, and she reunited with her group. Sheriff Christina Corpus expressed gratitude toward the volunteer rescuers: "I applaud our dedicated volunteers for finding the missing hiker under extremely challenges conditions. Their efforts saved this woman's life," she said, emphasizing the frequent occurrence of such incidents and the perils of hiking in the area, as per the San Mateo County Sheriff's Office.
