One person was killed and another injured after two hikers were swept out to sea on the Lost Coast Trail near Shelter Cove, California, on Sunday, according to officials.
Authorities received a call about two people in the water at around 2:45 p.m., according to the Shelter Cove Fire Department. One of the hikers was “actively treading water in the rough waves” while the other was face down about 50-100 yards offshore, a news release said.
After a rescue by the ocean rescue unit, one person was declared dead on the scene while the other was taken to the hospital. That person’s condition was not released by the department.
The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office said it was investigating the incident.
In a news release, the sheriff’s office said the rescue unit “contacted a group of hikers who confirmed that two individuals from their party were swept into the ocean.”
Shelter Cove is more than 200 miles north of San Francisco. The community is bordered by the King Range National Conservation Area to the north and the Sinkyon Wilderness State Park.
According to the Bureau of Land Management, the 24-mile-long Lost Coast Trail is “one of the few coastal wilderness hiking experiences” in the country. The bureau notes that much of the trail is beach hiking.