San Diego

Mission Trails Missing Hiker Found in Scripps Ranch

A hiker missing in Mission Trails Regional Park was found in Scripps Ranch, after she hiked until she saw a house.  

San Diego Police (SDPD) say the hiker's friend called police at 12:25 p.m., telling them her friend had called to say she was lost and disoriented. 

Search and rescue crews, as well as a helicopter, began searching at the Father Junipero Serra Trail near Mast Boulevard at 1 p.m.

Zaira Hernandez, 25, did not have any food or water and, though experienced, had never entered the park from the Junipero Serra trail. 

"This is a vast area with lots of hiking trails," SDPD officer Andrea Brown said. 

Officers initially thought she may have followed a group of hikers in an attempt to find her way out of the park, but she got lost. 

Officials said she eventually kept hiking and knocked on doors in a Scripps Ranch neighborhood until someone called for help. 

"All I can say is, thank God," said Hernandez's mother, Gloria Coronado. "I came here all the way just asking God, oh please, please." 

No further information was immediately available.

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