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Searchers seek 2nd hiker in area where Julian Sands missing

People Julian Sands
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SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. (AP) — Rescue personnel in California have launched a search for a second hiker on the same snow-covered mountain where actor Julian Sands is missing.

The San Bernardino Sheriff’s Department said in a statement that its search and rescue team received a request Sunday to search for a 75-year-old Los Angeles man on 10,064-foot (3,068-meter) Mt. Baldy.

Jin Chung, of North Hollywood, was last seen around 6 a.m. on Sunday, the sheriff's department said.

Chung carpooled to the mountain with two others and made plans to meet them at the vehicle at 2 p.m., but Chung did not return, authorities said. Ground crews searched unsuccessfully for Chung after he was reported missing.

The sheriff's department said rescuers unsuccessfully continued searching for Sands on Mt. Baldy over the weekend.

"Helicopters and drones continued to use infrared devices during the search however, all were negative for any signs of Sands," the department's statement said.

Sands, 65, was reported missing Jan. 13 while hiking. Search and rescue crews began looking for him on the highest peak in the San Gabriel Mountains, about 40 miles (64 kilometers) northeast of downtown Los Angeles.

Storms have coated the mountain with heavy snow and ice, and searches have been thwarted by the threat of avalanches and foul weather, including powerful winds.

Authorities describe mountain conditions as extremely dangerous. Two hikers have died in recent weeks. One fell at least 500 feet (152 meters) down an icy slope.

Sands starred opposite Helena Bonham Carter in the 1985 British romance from director James Ivory, “A Room With a View.”

He also had major roles in 1989's “Warlock,” 1990's “Arachnophobia,” 1991's “Naked Lunch,” 1993's “Boxing Helena,” and 1995's “Leaving Las Vegas.”

Sands has worked consistently in the decades since with smaller roles in film and television.