Human remains found in a remote and rocky section of California's Joshua Tree National Park sparked an investigation by the National Park Service and the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department, a report said.
Park authorities were alerted on Thursday about the possible remains after another agency analyzing photos taken during a November drone flight in the area, The Palm Springs Desert Sun reported.
Park rangers hiked to the 49 Palms Oasis area on Friday where they discovered the remains and personal belongs not far from the trails, the newspaper reported.
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The remains contained no identification but rangers believe they have been in the area a while, park staff said. One hiker, Paul Miller, disappeared in July 2018 after heading out to 49 Palms Oasis trail, the newspaper reported.
No confirmation has been made yet of the manner of death, but initial reports say there has been no sign of foul play.
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Miller, 51, went missing after leaving his Twentynine Palms hotel with his wife to take one more hike before returning home to Ontario, the Desert Sun reported.
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When he failed to return to the hotel a few hours later, his wife reported him missing.
At one point, a helicopter was used to take high-resolution aerial photos to spot any anomalies, the newspaper reported. It's unclear if those photos were the ones that an outside agency analyzed when they found evidence of human remains.