Body of missing hiker found days after disappearance in New Hampshire mountains
The body of Emily Sotelo, a 19-year-old woman who went missing while on a hike in New Hampshire, has been found.
Sotelo was last seen on Sunday morning, when she was dropped off at a campground in Fraconia, N.H. Sotelo said that she had plans to hike three mountains in the area, according to the state's fish and game law enforcement division. On Sunday evening, the division said that Sotelo was "overdue" and asked the public for help finding Sotelo.
On Wednesday, tracks and personal belongings led search crews to Sotelo's body, officials announced on Facebook.
A cause of death was not released, and it's not clear when in the three-day period Sotelo died. A New Hampshire Army National Guard helicopter helped extricate Sotelo's body.
According to CBS affiliate WGME, Wednesday is also Sotelo's 20th birthday.
The division said on Facebook that the search had been impacted by "high winds, cold temperatures and blowing snow." Dozens of ground searchers were involved in the effort to find Sotelo, from multiple local and state agencies. Air support was also called in to help search the mountains.
Charlie Stewart, a searcher with Pemigewasset Valley Search and Rescue, told WGME that Sotelo may not have been properly attired for the cold weather. Authorities said that Sotelo was last seen wearing exercise pants and a brown jacket.
"She was wearing sneakers, potentially some wind pants — not really ready for what the temperatures are right now," Stewart said.