SoCal hiker went to search for lost friends. They were rescued; he was not

After a group of four hikers became lost Saturday in a remote, mountainous region of Riverside County, a fellow hiker in their group — fearing for their safety — struck out on his own to search for them, authorities said.

The four hikers were later found and rescued by units with the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office. But the man who went to help them was discovered dead at the bottom of a 150-foot rock face.

The Riverside County Sheriff’s Office said they received a call at 8:26 p.m. Saturday about the group of lost hikers near State Route 74 in Anza. The department’s aviation and mountain rescue units were called out. The initial group of four lost hikers was located by air, and rescuers hoisted them to safety.

The department continued the search and found the other hiker at the bottom of the steep vertical stretch of rock. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

The surviving hikers were taken to the sheriff’s Lake Hemet Mountain Station for medical evaluation. Their condition was not immediately known.

The county Coroner’s Bureau has taken over the investigation into the hiker’s death. The department has not released the name of the deceased hiker.