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Man missing from Death Valley campsite in…
Man missing from Death Valley campsite in 100-degree heat
Air and ground searchers near Saline Valley Warm Springs on May 11, 2021. (Inyo County Sheriff's Office)
By Bay Area News Group |
PUBLISHED: May 13, 2021 at 7:54 a.m. | UPDATED: May 14, 2021 at 12:51 p.m.
The ground search for a man who hasn't been seen for more than a week was suspended Wednesday as temperatures in Death Valley exceeded 100 degrees, Inyo County sheriff's officials said.
Robert Alan Wildoner. (Family photo via Inyo County Sheriff's Office)
Bob Wildoner, 76, of Apple Valley (San Bernardino County), is being sought in the area of Saline Valley Warm Springs. He reportedly went there on May 4 to repair a pickup truck that had broken down during an outing a month before, on Easter weekend, said a missing-person alert from the sheriff's office.
He failed to return or contact his family as expected on May 5, and he was reported missing May 8.
His truck was found at a Saline Valley campsite, with his keys and phone inside it.
An aerial search involving several agencies continued on Wednesday but the heat was deemed too dangerous for a ground search, the sheriff's office said.
Wildoner is described as 5-foot-6, 160 pounds, bald, with a close-cropped white beard.
Saline Valley Warm Springs is in a remote area of the national park, with the 55-mile drive from Big Pine taking close to three hours because of the rugged road.
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In December, a San Francisco man was found dead in one of the thermal pools at the primitive campground, which at the time was closed because of COVID-19 restrictions.
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