Search continues for actor Julian Sands after hike in California

SAN BERNADINO COUNTY, Calif. — Authorities said Thursday that they continue to search for British actor Julian Sands after he vanished last week while hiking in the San Gabriel Mountains.

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The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department began searching for Sands after he was reported missing in the Mount Baldy area on the night of Jan. 13.

Authorities said they pinged his phone and found that he had been heading to the area. Cell phone data showed that he might have been on a trail leading to the summit of Mount Baldy on Saturday, but further attempts to ping his phone were unsuccessful, due likely to a lack of cell phone reception or his phone battery dying, deputies said.

Search crews checked the area where Sands’ phone pinged on Saturday, but found nothing to help them locate the actor, authorities said. On Saturday evening, deputies suspended their ground search because of trail conditions and avalanche risks. Officials said Thursday that they are continuing to search by helicopter and drones “when the weather permits.”

Earlier, deputies warned people to avoid the Mount Baldy area as high winds have turned snow into ice and made hiking “extremely dangerous.”

In recent weeks, search and rescue teams have responded to more than a dozen reports of lost, stranded or injured hikers in the area. Two hikers have died after falling and injuring themselves, officials said

“The recent storms that brought the snow and ice conditions are not favorable for hikers, even those that feel they have a high level of experience,” deputies said Wednesday in a statement.

Authorities are also separately searching for another hiker who went missing in the area last week. Robert Gregory, of Hawthorne, was reported missing after going for a hike in the San Gabriel Mountains early on Friday morning, according to KTLA.

Sands is best known for starring in films including the 1985 British romance “A Room With a View,” the 1989 horror film “Warlock,” and 1990′s “Arachnophobia.” He has also appeared in dozens of other movies and television shows,

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