Missing Hikers Rescued After Six Hours Of Waiting

Riverside County Sheriff’s deputies rescued a man and two children who got lost while hiking above the La Quinta Cove area Tuesday.

The man, along with his 10-year-old son and 17-year-old nephew, called authorities at 3:30 p.m., according to deputies at the staging area of the rescue effort, who said the man told them they were disoriented and couldn’t find their way back.

A search-and-rescue helicopter located the three as the sun set, but was unable to get to the them. The pilot told them to stay where they were and stay huddled together in a canyon area.

The man, who was a visitor from North Hollywood, told deputies they were not ready for an overnight excursion. They had no jackets or food. Temperatures in the Palm Springs area at 6:15 p.m. hovered around 55-degrees.

Riverside County search-and-rescue teams fanned out on-foot to locate the three in the area where the helicopter last spotted them.

The three of them were brought down the trail about 9:30 p.m.