The body of a woman found Monday by police on a trail in a wilderness area is believed to be a missing 50-year-old, according to ABC News.
Diem Le Nguyen went missing Sunday morning after she lost track of her hiking group of approximately 100 people, the San Diego Police Department (SDPD) said, the outlet reported. The group was reportedly hiking Black Mountain Open Space Park’s Nighthawk Trail in the Rancho Peñasquitos region of north San Diego.
Police said a search helicopter found a body Monday morning in the search area, according to ABC News. (RELATED: Two Separate Travelers Go Missing In Greece After Authorities Find Body Days Earlier)
Police said they are currently unable to verify it is Nguyen until the autopsy comes back, the outlet reported. Her family has been informed of the discovery, CBS 8 reported.
Nguyen began the hike with her group at approximately 8 a.m. PT, according to ABC News. The group hiked around halfway up the mountain before a number of people decided to descend due to the heat, Lt. Daniel Meyer, an SDPD spokesman, told reporters Monday, the outlet reported.
Meyer reportedly said Nguyen decided to continue the hike by herself.
Body of missing hiker found near ‘Nighthawk Trail’ on Black Mountain https://t.co/zWMwF63WI1
— CBS 8 San Diego (@CBS8) June 24, 2024
The woman called her relatives in distress a little after 10 a.m. saying that she was very hot and thirsty, the lieutenant added, the outlet reported. She was never heard from again, Meyers said, according to ABC News.
Law enforcement reportedly arrived at the scene at approximately 11:30 a.m. Sunday and a search-and-rescue operation began. A San Diego County Sheriff’s Department helicopter crew was reportedly deployed.
The National Weather Service had released a heat advisory covering the region, the outlet reported. Temperatures reportedly rose Sunday into the low 90s.
Nguyen was intent on hiking to the summit of the 4,048-foot-tall Black Mountain, police stated, according to the outlet.
