Daniel Nguyen of Westminster fell 1,500 feet to his death while hiking in Mt. Baldy on Tuesday morning, according to the San Bernardino County Coroner’s Office.

Mr. Nguyen, 23, was hiking with a friend along the Devil’s Backbone portion of Mt. Baldy. The friend called 911 at 7:41 a.m. stating that Mr. Nguyen slipped and fell.

When a sheriff’s department helicopter arrived at 9:05 a.m., they found Mr. Nguyen 1,500 feet down the mountainside. He was pronounced dead on scene at 5:16 p.m., according to a release from the coroner.

Chris Brookhart of the Mt. Baldy Fire Department said recent seasons with bad ice have “claimed many lives over the years.”

“When you slip, you’re sliding pretty fast and you’re covering a lot of ground pretty fast,” Mr. Brookhart said.

Mr. Brookhart suggests hikers planning to trek through Mt. Baldy during the winter should use proper equipment such as ice axes and crampons, which are sharp metal points that mount to boots.

The incident is under investigation.

—Matthew Bramlett

news@claremont-courier.com