Costa Mesa Hikers Rescued Near Palm Springs Tram

Cabazon sheriff's deputies were called out this weekend to help rescue four people, two from Costa Mesa, who got lost during a hike from the Palm Springs Tram, according to a sheriff's sergeant.

Sheriff's deputies from the Cabazon station responded around 7 p.m. Sunday to the top of the tram after one of the hikers used a cell phone to summon help, according to Riverside County sheriff's Sgt. Mike Portillo.

The hikers - Yan Kwong, 30, of San Diego, Minh Soi, 33, of Costa Mesa, My Ha, 29, also of Costa Mesa, and Shihchia Huang, 26, of Los Angeles - wandered off a hiking trail near the Tamarack Campground, according to Portillo.

"Riverside County Sheriff's Emergency Response Team (SERT) was notified and the Riverside Mountain Rescue Unit (RMRU) was immediately mobilized and responded to the scene," Portillo said.

The hikers were found by recscue crews about two hours later, but "due to the weather, [they] had to make their way to the Ranger Station, where they bedded down until the morning hours when rescue personnel were able to safely escort the hikers back to the Palm Springs Tram," the sergeant said.

The hikers were uninjured and escorted Monday back to the tram, the sergeant added.

—City News Service contributed to this report.