Hiker rescued from forest after 26 hours in the cold

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An Arcadia man who was separated from friends while hiking in the Angeles National Forest was located Sunday night and taken to a hospital after surviving 26 hours in frigid temperatures, Los Angeles County sheriff’s officials said.

Danny Kim, 28, was discovered by search-and-rescue personnel about 8 p.m. Sunday. He was described as wet, injured and “extremely hypothermic.” Kim was airlifted by the Los Angeles County Fire Department to a hospital, where he is in stable condition, Deputy Matt Bodell said.

Kim and two friends went hiking in the West Fork area of the forest and attempted to go north on a trail in the late afternoon Saturday, Bodell said. Kim got separated from the group about 6 p.m. and endured below-freezing temperatures overnight as searchers tried to locate him.

Family members described Kim as physically fit and “determined,” Bodell said, adding that the average person could not have endured the cold. Kim had only a light jacket and no flashlight, Bodell said, but search-and-rescue personnel found him walking.

“If he had sat down, that would have been a problem,” Bodell said.

Bodell said Kim appeared to have sustained a small injury to the back of his head. He was being treated for that injury and his hypothermia Sunday night, Bodell said.

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