Hiker Found Dead in Romero Canyon Above Montecito

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By Lara Cooper, Noozhawk Staff Writer | @laraanncooper

Woman had called for help, saying she was having chest pains, but remote location hampered emergency response

A woman who called authorities Friday afternoon to say she was suffering chest pains while hiking the Romero Canyon Trail above Montecito was found dead by first responders who struggled to access the remote location.

Paramedics reached the woman via helicopter at about 2:15 p.m., more than an hour after she had reported being in distress, according to a statement from the Montecito Fire Protection District.

When they arrived, the woman was dead, with her three dogs by her side. Her body was airlifted from the scene, and rescue crews hiked the dogs out to safety, where they were turned over to Santa Barbara County Animal Services.

The woman, whose identity and age were not released, was found approximately two miles from the top of the trail off East Camino Cielo, fire officials said.

Montecito firefighters responded to the incident along with personnel from sheriff’s Search & Rescue team, the Sheriff’s Department, the U.S. Forest Service, AMR and Animal Services.

Dispatchers were able to obtain GPS coordinates from the woman’s cell phone, but because of her remote location, a helicopter was sent from Santa Barbara County to assist ground crews that hiked down from East Camino Cielo and up from Bella Vista Drive in Montecito, officials said.

— Noozhawk staff writer Lara Cooper can be reached at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address). Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.

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