66-year-old man missing after hike near Colorado National Monument, Park Service says
A 66-year-old man is missing after going on a hike at Colorado National Monument, park officials said.
The National Park Service said Friday that a “search-and-rescue operation” is happening on the southeast side of the monument near Fruita, Colorado, to look for Jim Fuchs.
Fuchs, a man from Grand Junction, left a note indicating he planned to hike Monday, according to an NPS news release.
“Staff at the monument was notified at approximately 7:00 p.m. Thursday, June 25, 2020 by a friend who had found the note and had been unable to contact him,” the news release said. “Fuchs’ vehicle was found at the Lower Serpents Trail parking lot, just inside the east (Grand Junction) entrance to the monument.”
The National Park Service, Mesa County Sheriff’s Office and Mesa County Search and Rescue Ground Team started the search Thursday night with a drone that has thermal imaging and cameras, park officials said.
More than a dozen volunteers are looking for Fuchs.
In another area of Colorado, a 23-year-old hiker died after falling about 30 feet, CBS4 reported.
A thunderstorm Wednesday evening stranded the man and a 19-year-old woman on South Boulder Peak, according to the news outlet.
The woman fell on slippery rocks and was seriously injured, according to 9News. The man died trying to help her, the news outlet reported.
