Hotshot Firefighter Remains Missing In Inland Empire

INLAND EMPIRE, CA — The public's help is sought in finding a Hotshot firefighter who went missing near Big Bear after battling the Inland Empire's El Dorado Fire, and he may have been picked up by someone driving a Subaru, officials announced Monday afternoon.

Carlos Alexander Baltazar, 35, was reported missing by his family around 4:30 p.m. Thursday, according to the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department. Four days earlier, his vehicle was found by the California Highway Patrol on Highway 18 and Delta Way, the department said.

An air and ground search began after the family reported him missing, and his backpack was found 75 yards away from his vehicle.

"K-9s continued to track Carlos' scent, but the scent was eventually lost. We are continuing the search with deputies and bloodhounds," the sheriff's department said.

Baltazar is a part of the United States Forest Service Interagency Hotshot Crew and was off duty at the time he went missing.

He is described by the sheriff's department as Hispanic, bald, with brown eyes, 5 feet, 9 inches tall, and weighing 175 pounds.

Monday morning, the sheriff's department said, "The investigation into the whereabouts of Carlos Baltazar continues. Deputies/detectives continue to follow up on information that has been received since Baltazar went missing. Updates will be provided as new information becomes available."

By Monday afternoon, the department said Baltazar may have been picked up near his vehicle on Highway 18 and Delta Way by someone driving a Subaru.

Baltazar's disappearance comes after the death of fellow hotshot Charles Edward Morton, who died Sept. 17 while battling the El Dorado Fire that broke out Sept. 5 in Yucaipa.

Funeral services for Morton, a 14-year USFS veteran, were held Friday.

The El Dorado Fire, sparked by pyrotechnics, has burned 22,680 acres and was 92 percent contained as of Monday morning.