Hiker rescued after 5 days lost in Angeles National Forest

LOS ANGELES — A hiker who was missing for five days in rugged Southern California wilderness was located alive during an extensive search.

George Null, 58, was picked up Wednesday by a Los Angeles County sheriff’s helicopter in remote area of the Angeles National Forest.

A Sheriff’s Department photo taken with a crew member showed Null dirty and with a stubbly beard but smiling broadly.

“So relieved,” his sister, Rebecca Latta, told KCBS-TV after learning of rescue. “We didn’t know, for days. Not knowing is so hard.”

The search by authorities and volunteers began Saturday when Null did not return from a day hike in the Mount Waterman area of the San Gabriel Mountains, about 25 miles (40.2 kilometers) northeast of downtown Los Angeles.

The helicopter crew spotted him waving next to a creek in a deep canyon.

Latta said her brother gave her a huge hug.

“I think he’s so exhausted that he really doesn’t have a lot of words right now, and he’s maybe a little bit delirious after five days of wandering around in the forest,” she said.