Two young hikers have been found dead near Colorado's Ice Mountain 48 hours after they were reported missing from college.
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they → find → college
Kaden Matsuda, 19, and Jackson Donlon, 20, went hiking near Ice Mountain in northern Chaffee County on October 23.
When the college students did not return on schedule, staff at Colorado Mountain College Leadville Campus alerted the Chaffee County Sheriff’s Office around 10.00am on October 26, police said.
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police → go → October
Deputies and search and rescue personnel looked around Winfield and the Mt Huron trailhead and found Matsuda’s vehicle parked and covered in snow.
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vehicle → look → snow
The authorities searched nearby areas and soon located their tent.
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authorities → search → tent
This led the team to finally discover their bodies lying next to each other near a basin of West Apostle Mountain, police said.
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police → lead → Mountain
‘Our hearts ache for Kaden and Jackson’s family and friends.
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hearts → ache → Kaden
We are very proud of our team’s efforts to find them before this weekend’s coming storm,’ Sheriff Andy Rohrich said.
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Rohrich → find → storm
‘Although this is a gut punch, our prayers were answered that we would find Kaden and Jackson, allowing some closure for the family,’ the sheriff added.
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sheriff → answer → family
Police said it does not suspect any foul play and said that it ‘will not offer theories as to what may have happened until an autopsy can be completed.’
uncertain
autopsy → say → theories
Kaden Matsuda (left) and Jackson Donlon (right) left for a hike to Colorado's Ice Mountain on October 23 but did not return
The staff at Colorado Mountain College Leadville Campus alerted the police after which a extensive search for the two young men began
Searchers and rescue teams looked for Matsuda and Donlon for 48 hours.
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Searchers → leave → hours
Their bodies were found near a basin of West Apostle Mountain
When Matsuda and Donlon started the hike, it was raining in the area, the police said.
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police → find → area
It eventually started snowing and covered their car in eight inches of snow, cops added.
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cops → start → snow
The area was heavily searched by almost 50 searchers, canines and handlers, drones, helicopters and the multimission aircraft with infrared technology, but their bodies were not located.
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bodies → search → technology
Their phones had also not been used in the last 48 hours of their disappearance.
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phones → use → disappearance
'The service in the area would be almost nonexistent, and they certainly could have turned the phones off to preserve the batteries, which makes the 48 hours less concerning,' the police said.
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police → turn → batteries
The searchers found the hikers’ tent after a day of searching.
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searchers → find → searching
The police said it had collapsed under the weight of the snow.
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it → say → snow
The rescue team found their sleeping bags, a stove and some clothing inside the tent.
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team → find → tent
‘Kaden and Jackson’s dorms were searched, and their climbing equipment was not found.
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equipment → search → ?
The equipment was not located in their vehicle at the trailhead nor in their tent, which suggests they were prepared for a more technical climb when they left their tent,’ the authorities said.
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authorities → locate → tent
‘There was evidence (trash) found inside the tent to suggest the two put plenty of fuel (food) in their body before they started their hike.
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they → be → hike
Their “walk in” footwear (tennis shoe style) was found in their tent and their footwear used for advanced climbing was missing,’ they added.
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they → walk → climbing
At this point, the team was still hopeful that the men were hunkered down somewhere waiting to be rescued.
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men → hunker → point
Friends of the two hikers told the police that Matsuda and Donlon had told them that they planned to return from the hike on October 24 if they did not feel safe.
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they → tell → October
Had they continued the trip to Ice Mountain, they would have returned on Sunday.
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they → continue → Sunday
The young men were experienced hikers and had also sent a text to their friends with a map plot of their hike to the 13,958-foot peak, they told the police.
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they → send → police
Authorities said it will take help from the Chaffee County Coroner’s Office for a detailed investigation.
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it → say → investigation
The Aporia
