The body found on the Montagne Noire is that of a missing hiker

Christy Simeral and Danielle Dawson

14 minutes ago

SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) — The body found Monday in Black Mountain has been confirmed to be that of a 50-year-old hiker who went missing the day before, according to a report from the San Diego County Medical Examiner's Office.

Diem “Dina” Le Nguyen was reported missing Sunday after she became separated from a large group hiking the Nighthawk Trail.

The hike was part of an annual 5K fundraiser for the nonprofit Build a School Foundation. According to organizer Jimmy Thai Dtm, some of the group turned around halfway to the summit, while Nguyen continued to the summit with those who had stayed on the hike. The family members she was with were among those who chose to descend early.

Nguyen can be seen in a Thai Dtm livestream of the group at the top of the mountain taking the photo which was later distributed when she disappeared. At another point in the video, she can be seen heading east, apparently beginning the journey back to the base of the mountain.

Nguyen started the hike around 8 a.m., said Lt. Dan Meyer of the San Diego Police Department. She was last seen by the group around 9:30 a.m. Then, around 10:08 a.m., she made a distress call to her sister, saying she was “extremely hot and needed water,” according to Meyer. That was the last time anyone heard from him.

Authorities said Nguyen was considered “missing at risk” due to the difficulty of the trail and the extreme heat in the hours after her disappearance. An excessive heat advisory was in effect at the time of his disappearance.

At 7:30 a.m. Monday, search and rescue efforts resumed. Then around 9:15 a.m., police were informed that a body had been found. The body was first spotted by a helicopter and first responders were dispatched to the scene – about a quarter mile from the intersection of Carmel Mountain Road and Via Remeni – where they confirmed it was indeed of an Asian woman.

“She almost made it out,” Meyer said.

At that time, police said the body was likely Nguyen's, but they were awaiting identification from the medical examiner's office.

According to SDPD, the hiker likely became confused about where she was on the twists and turns and overlapping trails on Black Mountain while enduring heat exhaustion.

The medical examiner's office has not yet released the cause of death.