Marcus Alexander Muench Casanova, 19, died on the Devil’s Backbone trail after reportedly falling 500ft
A 19-year-old college freshman has been identified as one of the hikers whose remains were found on California’s Mount Baldy on Monday.
The San Bernardino county sheriff announced this week that Marcus Alexander Muench Casanova, a resident of Seal Beach, California, was discovered along a mountain trail known as the Devil’s Backbone.
The sheriffs’ department said they responded to reports of a hiker who had fallen “approximately 500 feet”, and that his “friend and hiking companion hiked to an area with cellular service and provided GPS coordinates to assist rescuers”. Rescue crews arrived on foot but a helicopter airlift was inhibited due to “severe winds”. An air medic was eventually lowered down and confirmed Casanova was deceased, the department said.
Two other hikers were also found dead, but have yet to be identified, and Casanova’s cause of death has not been determined by the county coroner.
