Julian Sands: Helicopters again grounded by high winds in search for missing actor
Fresh searches on higher ground for Sands are still not possible due to poor conditions
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Authorities in California say the search for Julian Sands will continue by air only.
The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department released an update on Wednesday evening US time to say helicopters continued to search the San Gabriel Mountains for any sign of the missing British actor.
The California Highway Patrol’s Valley Division Air Ops has been brought in to assist the search using a device that can detect reflective material and in some cases credit cards, the sheriff’s office said.
Meanwhile, Julian Sands’ brother Nick has said that he knows “in my heart” that his sibling is no longer alive, as the search for the missing British actor approached its second week.
“However sibling rivalry being what it is, it would be just like him to walk out of there and prove me wrong,” Nick said in comments to his his local Yorkshire paper, the Craven Herald.
Sands was reported missing on 13 January, sparking a major search and rescue effort led by the San Bernardino Sheriff’s Office.
On Tuesday, an official statement from the sheriff’s office said that fresh searches on higher ground for Sands are still not possible due to poor conditions.
Last week, Sands’ family released the last known images of him mountaineering, telling The Independent: “This is how he would love to be seen, doing what he loved best – a heroic mountaineer.”
Julian Sands’ family are ‘frantic with worry’ after the British actor went missing
The search for Julian Sands is now in its 11th day, with his family issuing a statement on Monday thanking authorities for their “heroic” efforts.
“His family are frantic with worry,” a close friend told The Independent.
‘What he loved best’: Last pictures actor Julian Sands sent from snow-clad mountain
Picture exclusive: Poignant images show missing ‘A Room with a View’ star scaling peaks in the Alps as search enters sixth day
San Bernardino County Sheriff’s update on Julian Sands’ search
The sheriff’s department also announced that they’re closing in on the second full week of the search for missing hiker, Julian Sands.
“Numerous ground and air search efforts have taken place,” the new statement reads. “As of this time, Mr Sands has not been found and no evidence of his current location has been discovered.
“The search will continue, weather and ground conditions permitting.”
Julian Sands’ family thanks ‘heroic’ efforts of search and rescue teams
On Monday, the Leaving Las Vegas star’s family thanked authorities for their “heroic” efforts in the search.
“Our heartfelt thanks to the compassionate members of the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department who are coordinating the search for our beloved Julian, not least the heroic search teams listed below who are braving difficult conditions on the ground and in the air to bring Julian home,” the statement read.
Julian Sands’ brother says he knows ‘in his heart’ his brother is gone
Julian Sands’ brother has revealed that he “knows in his heart” that his missing sibling is no longer alive.
Nick Sands, from Gargrave, Yorkshire, told the Craven Herald that he had accepted that the prospects of finding the Leaving Las Vegas actor 11 days after he went missing in treacherous conditions in a Californian mountain range alive had all but gone.
“He has not yet been declared missing, presumed dead, but I know in my heart that he has gone,” Nick Sands told the local news site.
“However, sibling rivalry being what it is, it would be just like him to walk out of there and prove me wrong.”
Julian Sands’ brother says he fears missing actor won’t be found
“Julian liked to say ‘I have never had a holiday but I do rest occasionally’ – well he’s resting now in a place he would truly approve of,” his brother Nick says
High-ground efforts delayed as Julian Sands search nears end of second week
An update shared by San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department on Tuesday (24 January) said “numerous” ground and air searches for Julian Sands had previously taken place in lower areas, but no evidence of the actor’s location had been found.
The official statement added that fresh searches on higher ground for Sands are still not possible due to poor conditions.
“The Sheriff’s Department is closing in on the second full week of the search for missing hiker, Julian Sands,” the online statement read.
“Numerous ground and air search efforts have taken place. As of this time, Mr. Sands has not been found and no evidence of his current location has been discovered.
“The search will continue, weather and ground conditions permitting.”
The statement added: “Regardless of precautions taken by hikers, the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department highly recommends hikers avoid hazardous mountainous areas, such as Mt Baldy, at this time.”
Is the climate crisis behind a string of California hiker tragedies?
On a clear day, the peak of southern California’s 10,000ft Mount Baldy looms over the Los Angeles skyline.
The mountain is emblematic of a growing threat: the deadly impact of the climate crisis on one of America’s favourite pastimes, the great outdoors.
This month, as climate-amped superstorms battered California, first responders have carried out 14 rescue missions on Mount Baldy’s peak, the highest summit in the San Gabriel mountain range.
Two people have died and a third man, the British actor Julian Sands, is still missing after nearly a week.
The Independent’s Josh Marcus investigates the link between climbing accidents and climate.
Julian Sands is the latest hiker to go missing. Is climate change to blame?
Extreme winter weather is becoming more common in the Golden State, Josh Marcus reports
Watch: Who is the British actor missing in California?
Watch below for a short history of Julian Sands’ biography, career milestones, and the details surrounding his missing person’s case.
Julian Sands: Who is the Hollywood British actor missing in California?
British actor Julian Sands has been missing in California after he is believed to have embarked on a hike last week. The star of critically acclaimed films including The Killing Fields and A Room With a View disappeared in Mount Baldy on 13 Friday. Evgenia Citkowitz, his wife, reported the 65-year-old missing, and his vehicle has been found in the mountain range area. This video outlines who he is, his career milestones, and the details surrounding his missing person's case. Click here to sign up for our newsletters.
Julian Sands’ family are ‘frantic with worry’ after the British actor went missing
The search for Julian Sands is now in its 11th day, with his family issuing a statement on Monday thanking authorities for their “heroic” efforts.
“His family are frantic with worry,” a close friend told The Independent.
Julian Sands, the prolific star of Arachnophobia, missing in California
Sands has appeared in more than 150 films and TV series
Frank Marshall sends wishes to Julian Sands’s family
“Hope and thoughts going out to the family of my dear friend and wonderful actor, Julian Sands, who is missing on Mt Baldy. Let’s all pray for a miracle,” Frank Marshall wrote on Twitter.
At least 19 people killed in California storms
California has been hit by a string of violent winter storms that have brought flooding and major snowfall, prompting power cuts and evacuations and leading to the deaths of at least 19 people.
According to the sheriff’s department, it has launched 14 search and rescue missions in the Mount Baldy area alone over the past month, with two hikers dying on the mountain.
In addition to Julian Sands, rescuers in Los Angeles county are also currently searching the San Gabriel range for missing 61-year-old hiker Robert Gregory.
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