SAN DIEGO — A 24-year-old man from Otay Mesa collapsed and died mountain biking this weekend during extreme weather conditions.
“He was down, unconscious,” said Battalion Chief John Kremensky with Cal Fire San Diego.
“It was so boiling. The temperature was 110 degrees," Kremensky continued.
Kremensky, one of the first responders, said the mountain biker suffered from a severe heat-related illness. “He had a backpack and his clothes on. He had shorts, so we stripped him of his shirt and his backpack and started cooling measures. Then we carried him to a transfer vehicle and met with the medic unit ambulance.”
The medical examiner’s office said they are still working to confirm his identity and have not released his name.
It happened Saturday around 2:45 p.m. in the Carrizo Gorge area of the Jacumba Mountains, near Goat Canyon Trestle Bridge. Four hikers suffering from heat exhaustion were found by four mountain bikers, including the man who died.
Two mountain bikers rode to an area where they could get cell service and called for help. A helicopter flew the hikers out, and the remaining two mountain bikers continued their ride, but a few minutes later, one of them collapsed. “He looked fit and able, like the rest of his mountain biking crew with him,” Battalion Chief Kremensky said. “But the extreme temperatures don't matter how fit you are. It's just a treacherous area.”
Even with temperatures over 90 on Monday, we saw people hiking and jogging.
Cal Fire is urging people to either go early or late in the day. Better yet, they say, wait a few days for things to cool down. “I think a lot of people aren't up to speed on what the weather is doing,” said Captain Brent Pascua. “People have plans, and they're going through with them no matter what.”
Capt. Pascua says if you go out, ensure you have extra water, a cell phone to call someone if you get in trouble and hike with a buddy. That way, if you are too sick to call, someone else will be there to help you.
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