A Bay Area man who disappeared after accidentally separating from his friends during a hike remains missing despite a weekend search by authorities.
A group of roughly 70 law enforcement officers and volunteers searched Saturday for Saeed Emadi. Emadi was hiking July 8 at Ice House Reservoir, located 78 miles from Sacramento, when he inadvertently split from the group he was with, his three daughters, Zhila, Lena and Roya told The Sacramento Bee.
The 66-year-old from San Ramon, California called his friends after he became lost from a hill that overlooks the reservoir, but his phone battery was low and cell reception was patchy. His friends promptly called the county sheriff’s office to report him missing.
Since then, a search group equipped with helicopters and drones has attempted to locate Emadi.
Footprints found near the reservoir’s Strawberry Point matched the sneakers Emadi was wearing. Another sign emerged when more footprints were found more than a mile away. Emadi’s family is optimistic, saying the presence of natural springs of clean water nearby could keep a hiker alive for an extended period.
“He’s very strong-willed and we definitely believe that he would keep fighting and he’s not going to quit,” Roya Emadi said.
