Remains of missing hiker found on Mt. Baldy

Hikers have found the remains of a missing 52-year-old man on Mt. Baldy, authorities said Monday.

Sreenivas Mokkapati became separated from his group while hiking last December. The peak was blanketed in snow, and overnight temperatures hovered near freezing the week he went missing.

The remains were discovered June 19 at an elevation of about 7,800 feet on Baldy’s northwest side, according to the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department. The county’s medical examiner identified the remains as those of Mokkapati, the department said.

Friends and relatives said the Irvine man was an experienced hiker who had climbed the mountain several times but was prepared for only a day hike.

Rescue crews scoured the mountain for days, but the effort was suspended after a searcher fell to his death.

The 10,046-foot peak northeast of Los Angeles is a popular hiking spot, but the trails are rugged and can be treacherous in winter because of ice and heavy snow. Several people have fallen to their deaths in recent years.