- Brian Seibert sent a final message saying he was descending Mount Morgan before his fall
- He fell from a cliff near Grand Central Couloir and was reported missing the next day
- Search teams used photo analysis, phone forensics, K-9s, and a helicopter in the operation
A final text message sent by a hiker saying he was on his way down a mountain became his last known communication before he died in a fall. Brian Seibert, 53, had sent the message hours before suffering a fatal fall after summiting the 13,000-foot Mount Morgan in California. His body was recovered more than 72 hours after he fell from a cliff ledge near the base of Grand Central Couloir, reported NYPost.
Seibert sent the message at around 7 pm on Sunday, October 4, informing others that he was on his way down. However, he did not return as expected by around 11:30 pm, prompting the Mono County Sheriff's Search and Rescue Team to respond to a report of his disappearance on Monday, October 5.
The search involved investigators and local experts, who pieced together evidence using photo topographic matching, extensive mobile phone forensics and a search of Seibert's vehicle by a K-9 team.
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Rescuers also used a Cal Guard CH-47 Chinook helicopter to deploy search personnel at an altitude of 12,500 feet on Monday to continue looking for him.
On Tuesday, October 6, the search team spotted something unusual from the air near the bottom of Grand Central Couloir, a prominent gully on the eastern side of the mountain near its summit.
Mono County Search and Rescue, a volunteer wilderness rescue team, said the Schooner crew identified the anomaly shortly after 2 pm. Another team that had been following a single set of tracks descending the couloir then moved towards the location and found Seibert.
Although the missing hiker had been located, rescuers could not recover his body on Tuesday because of the challenging terrain.
The rescue team explained that the area between Seibert's location and the nearest landing zone was extremely difficult to navigate. As a result, there was not enough time to complete the recovery safely that day.
Seibert's body was finally recovered early on Wednesday by Yosemite National Park helicopter 551, which was capable of conducting short-haul operations, along with the Yosemite Search and Rescue crew.
