Mike Herdman | Photo: City of Arcadia
[KHTS] – The body of Mike Herdman, the missing firefighter from Arcadia, has been found, officials said Friday.
Herdman’s body was found in the wilderness area north of Fillmore, according to the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department.
Herdman, 36, disappeared Friday, June 13 during a camping trip in the Los Padres National Forest near Fillmore with a friend and fellow firefighter.
His dog, Duke, ran away from the campsite and Herdman chased after him, barefoot and wearing just a T-shirt and shorts.
He was reported missing when his friend emerged from the forest and contacted authorities.
Duke was found June 23 in a parking lot where Herdman’s car had been parked. Much of the search focused on finding Duke, who had been spotted twice in a week.
Authorities combed through a 50-square mile radius in in the Los Padres National Forest. At one point as many as 86 search and rescue volunteers had been looking for Herdman. Two manned flight crews and two drones were used to search the rugged terrain.
Several Southern California sheriff’s departments and a team of special agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement are also involved.
Officials have said that Herdman is an outdoors enthusiast with experience backpacking in the backcountry.
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52 Comments
So freakin sad! Prayers go out to his family…
Rest in Peace! Prayers to his love ones.
R I P and prayers for his loved ones.
So sad.
Really was praying this would end differently. Prayers for his friends and family.
Sad news.
So very sad and an extreme tragedy. For all those who searched long and hard for this gentleman, you are amazing and have shown such strength and dedication to this man and his family.
So tragic
Very sad for his wife and daughter.
<3 Rest In Peace Mike Herdman <3
This is terrible, you just never what crazy circumstance will call you home. RIP So sorry for this family’s loss.
So sad. May he rest in peace
RIP Mike Herdman. Prayers for his family. Everyone hug your loved ones extra close. We never know when they will be called home <3
Very sad.
Gloria
Against the odds, I think we were all hoping for a miraculous outcome to this story. So sad to hear the news. The details seem a bit strange. I hope there was no foul play involved.
I bet his friend did it!
R.I.P
R.I.P
Rest in Peace FireFighter Mike Herdman .May you rest in Peace. Thank You for The work you did in Helping Fight Fires and Saving Lives.
Rest in Peace FireFighter Mike Herdman .May you rest in Peace. Thank You for The work you did in Helping Fight Fires and Saving Lives.
:( Sad to hear this. Had been holding out hope.
:( Sad to hear this. Had been holding out hope.
I was hoping for a miracle. Very sad and tragic for his family. Thank you to the men and women who searched for many days to find him. We appreciate your dedication.
HORRIBLE TRAGEDY!!!
HORRIBLE TRAGEDY!!!
Rest in Peace…
Blessings to his family
So sorry to hear this. Prayers and blessings for his loved ones…
How did he die? I didn’t see that part. Lack of water?
Heart breaking. My condolences to his loved ones.
Jason Govier they still don’t know
What a tragedy… Rip
I’m so pissed off that he’s dead. I don’t know why. They could’ve done more. They should’ve found him sooner. A lady trapped upside down in a car that went over the embankment survives two weeks, hanging upside down and this guy dies. So sad. RIP
Sad news…Just wondering why an experienced outdoorsman, a trained firefighter would go running off in the middle of the night without a flash light and barefoot…..maybe something else happened that his buddy is not saying.
So sad :(
Yea I think they need to look at the buddy. Something isn’t adding up here.
It took the buddy two days to get cell service ???
Something is not right they need to investigate more . Doesn’t make sense, very sad
RIP
RIP. I’m glad the family can have some closure. Very Tragic :(
RIP. I’m glad the family can have some closure. Very Tragic :(
May he rest in peace.
May he rest in peace.
I’m glad the family can have some closure….. Very sad , these are the kind of tragedies you’re not ready for in life.
Lol
Our prayers for the family. R.I.P.
Such a sad ending. Prayers and support to friends and family.
I think there is more to the story of his passing. Rest In Piece, Mile Herdman. I hope your family and loved ones will sadly but fully understand what happened. And above most miss you.
such a young handsome guy. so said to hear of his loss. prayers to his family.
First off, Mike’s body similar to two year old Cecil T Turners’ was partially covered by brush in thickets away from the creek bottoms that people habitually traveled. Consider only those two facts then ponder, If you were a killer intent on saving your own skin would you naught have completely concealed said bodies? Or as in the case of Cecil’s disappearance would you not also have retrieved his diaper instead of leaving it in plain view in the open creek bottom?
We haven’t yet learned about the state of Mike’s body, but Cecil’s had contusions on his head and he had died from suffocation: results that could have occurred by being carried by the head much like a lion carries its cubs. Also Cecil vanished in close proximity to were lion had attacked four humans in Orange County and Mike in an area that was described by searchers as containing large population of the cats that habitually hide their kills beneath brush piles.
Still using the power of deduction, would you thus not find it incredulous that if Mike had accidently fallen from a cliff–that he would have tried to conceal his injured body beneath brush so no one would find it?
Given all of the above, I await with baited breath as to which out of the three Mike’s death is attributed too. Wildlife Biologist TJ Elsbury
Thank you to all the wonderful people who gave their time to search
for Mike. You were amazing and never gave up.
The search dogs were great also.
Sad that Mike didn’t make it out alive.
Even those who “know” the wilderness can still run into trouble.
Remember to never go out alone and tell someone where you plan to hike. Let’s all learn from this.