Missing Hiker Alert 7/21 SEKI (Resolved)

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SEKI NP:

[maverick]

SEKI NP:

A search is underway in Sequoia National Park for Matt Thoke, 43, of Newport Beach, CA. Thoke was last seen on Wednesday, July 21 at about 1 p.m. leaving the High Sierra Trail approximately three miles east of the Crescent Meadow trailhead, just east of Panther Creek. Anyone who may have been in this area anytime after July 21 is urged to contact Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks Dispatch at 888-677-2746 or seki_dispatch@nps.gov.

Thoke had split from his group during a multi-day wilderness trip and was hiking from Bearpaw to Crescent Meadow when he walked off trail, downhill to the south, without his pack. Thoke is six feet tall, 160 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes. He was last seen wearing an orange t-shirt, blue shorts, and pink hat.

An intensive search effort launched on the afternoon of July 21 with search personnel in the field daily, including:

- Ground Search and Rescue Teams
- Dog Search Teams
- Aerial Searches
- Trail Containment and Investigation
- Investigative Efforts


The search area terrain is extremely treacherous, and the park is using experienced search teams for these efforts.

“We are very optimistic and hopeful that the NPS will bring Matt Thoke home,” Lisa Thoke, wife of Matt Thoke says. “We appreciate the passion, care, and strategy they have for this mission. I truly believe his love for life and people are what’s keeping him going strong and alive. He is extraordinarily loved, not just by me, but by hundreds of family members and friends and everyone he’s touched throughout his life and all over the world. We can’t wait to get him back into our arms, so he continues to bring joy and impact others positively as he’s always done.”

The family asks for privacy at this time, and all media requests should go through the public information officer assigned to this incident.

Search efforts have been led by Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks with the assistance of Tulare and Fresno County Sherriff’s Offices, Yosemite National Park, Joshua Tree National Park, California National Guard, California Office of Emergency Services, and US Forest Service.

[maverick]

SEKI NP:

For the past 12 days, an extensive search has been underway in Sequoia National Park for Matthew Thoke, 43, of Newport Beach, CA. The search for Thoke is scaling back to limited continuous mode. This means that while searching will continue, the large number of resources and personnel that have been dedicated to this effort will be reduced. The search will remain in limited continuous mode until Thoke is found.

Thoke deliberately parted ways with his hiking group at Bearpaw Meadow on July 21, with the stated intention of hiking out to Crescent Meadow via the High Sierra Trail on his own. Thoke was last seen at about 1 p.m. that day, at which time he was traveling downhill and south off of the High Sierra Trail, about three miles east of the Crescent Meadow Trailhead, leaving his pack behind. The search was initiated that afternoon after Thoke failed to return to his pack.

Approximately 75 people have been involved in the search for Thoke. The parks have utilized a broad range of search techniques, including ground search and rescue teams deployed for multiple days, aerial searches via helicopter and unmanned aerial systems, infrared flights, canine search teams, trail containment, technical/mountaineering searches, and investigations. Despite these efforts, Thoke’s whereabouts remain unknown.

Ground searchers have been challenged throughout the process by terrain so steep, densely vegetated, and full of tripping and slipping hazards as to often be impassable even for skilled and experienced searchers.

“The decision to transition to limited continuous mode on this search is made with the utmost gravity and with tremendous compassion for Matthew’s friends and family,” says Clay Jordan, superintendent of Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks. “We ask that the public and press respect the family’s privacy in this extremely difficult time.”

Search efforts have been led by Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks with the assistance of Tulare, Fresno, Los Angeles, and Alameda County Sherriff’s Offices, Yosemite, Joshua Tree, and Pinnacles National Parks, Sierra Madre Mountain Rescue, the Bakersfield Police Department, California National Guard, California Office of Emergency Services, and the US Forest Service.

Thoke is six feet tall, 160 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes. He was last seen wearing an orange t-shirt, blue shorts, and a pink hat. Anyone who was in the area where he was last seen on or around July 21 is urged to contact Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks Dispatch at 888-677-2746 or SEKI_Dispatch@nps.gov.

This is the final news release about this search and rescue operation unless new information becomes available.

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SEKI NP:

FINAL UPDATE 8/9/21 - Matt Thoke's body was found and recovered over the weekend. His body was in a location that was not visible by air and hardly visible on the ground. We are not able to share more details at this time and ask that everyone please respect the family's privacy.
Thoke went missing on 7/21 in Sequoia National Park. Ground searchers had been challenged throughout the process by terrain so steep, densely vegetated, and full of tripping and slipping hazards as to often be impassable even for skilled and experienced searchers.
Thanks to all of you that have expressed your concern and best wishes for Thoke, his loved ones, and the many folks that were involved in this search for over 18 days.