MOUNT BALDY, Calif. (KABC) — Two hikers who were found dead on Mount Baldy earlier this week have been identified as Los Angeles residents from Guatemala.
Juan Sarat Lopez, 37, and Bayron Pedro Ramos Garcia, 36, were two of three hikers who were found dead on the mountain, according to the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department.
Marcus Alexander Muench Casanova, 19, was the third hiker and was identified earlier this week.
The hikers’ bodies were found on Monday, but dangerous winds delayed recovery efforts until Tuesday.
Friends say Casanova fell about 500 feet near Devil’s Backbone, a trail that lures thrill seekers to the snow-capped San Gabriel Mountains’ highest peak.
As crews were searching for Casanova, they came across the bodies of Lopez and Garcia.
Authorities said Lopez and Garcia were not hiking with Casanova at the time of the incident, but they believe they fell from the same Devil’s Backbone trail.
In Jan. 2023, the famed actor Julian Sands died along the very same trail. It took rescuers months to recover his body.
The deaths on the mountains prompted the closure of trails on Mount Baldy through Wednesday for safety.
