Press release from the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office:

The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office is searching for a Canadian man reportedly injured while hiking the Lost Coast Trail.

On Jan. 9, 2019, at about 9:30 p.m., the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office was dispatched to the Lost Coast Trail for the report of a missing hiker with possible injuries. The hiker, identified as 32-year-old Rick Raymond Eastep of Ontario, Canada, sent a text to the reporting party indicating that he had been injured while hiking the trail, possibly near the Miller Flat area. The reporting party told dispatchers that though the text appeared to have been sent on Monday, Jan. 7, it was not received until late Wednesday.

Sheriff’s deputies, Humboldt County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue Posse, Southern Humboldt Technical Rescue, Shelter Cove Fire, CAL FIRE, Bureau of Land Management and the Coast Guard are currently searching for Eastep. Search and rescue teams have conducted an extensive ground search of the area. A Coast Guard helicopter has also assisted in the search.

Anyone with information regarding Eastep’s whereabouts should contact the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office at (707) 445-7251.