Julian Sands: Helicopters again grounded by high winds in search for missing actor

Fresh searches on higher ground for Sands are still not possible due to poor conditions

Julian Sands: Who is the Hollywood British actor missing in California?

Authorities in California say the search for Julian Sands will continue by air only.

The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department released an update on Wednesday evening US time to say helicopters continued to search the San Gabriel Mountains for any sign of the missing British actor.

The California Highway Patrol’s Valley Division Air Ops has been brought in to assist the search using a device that can detect reflective material and in some cases credit cards, the sheriff’s office said. 

Meanwhile, Julian Sands’ brother Nick has said that he knows “in my heart” that his sibling is no longer alive, as the search for the missing British actor approached its second week.

“However sibling rivalry being what it is, it would be just like him to walk out of there and prove me wrong,” Nick said in comments to his his local Yorkshire paper, the Craven Herald.

Sands was reported missing on 13 January, sparking a major search and rescue effort led by the San Bernardino Sheriff’s Office.

On Tuesday, an official statement from the sheriff’s office said that fresh searches on higher ground for Sands are still not possible due to poor conditions.

Last week, Sands’ family released the last known images of him mountaineering, telling The Independent: “This is how he would love to be seen, doing what he loved best – a heroic mountaineer.”

Key points

• Police say search will continue by air only
• A missing hiker has been located on Mt Baldy
• Julian Sands’ brother says he fears missing actor won’t be found
• Sands’ family issues statement thanking authorities for search effort
• Julian Sands: A timeline of missing actor’s disappearance

[26 January 2023 23:00 · Inga Parkel]

Who is Julian Sands?

[27 January 2023 00:00 · Inga Parkel]

Sands’ brother shared heartbreaking words earlier this week, saying that he fears the worst.

“I know in my heart that he has gone.”

Julian Sands (Mike Lawn/Shutterstock)

“Julian liked to say ‘I have never had a holiday but I do rest occasionally’ – well he’s resting now in a place he would truly approve of,” his brother Nick says

[27 January 2023 01:00 · Inga Parkel]

Credit card-detecting technology used in search for Sands

In an update shared Wednesday (25 January), authorities said they were using a Recco device to help trace Sands.

“Recco technology can detect Recco reflective material, electronics, and in some cases, credit cards,” they said.

Read more:

Julian Sands was reported missing while hiking in southern California ( (Dan Tuffs/Alamy Stock Photo))

Fresh ground searches in the San Gabriel Mountains for British actor are still not possible due to poor conditions, authorities said

[27 January 2023 02:00 · Inga Parkel]

Sands still missing as second missing hiker located

On Sunday (22 January), over a week after Sands was reported missing, authorities were requested to start a search for a second missing hiker, Jin Chung.

A few days later on Tuesday (24 January), the San Bernardino Sheriff’s Department successfully located Chung. The 75-year-old Los Angeles resident “was transported to a local hospital for treatment”.

He had “suffered some weather-related injuries and a leg injury but was able to walk out with the assistance of the crew members”.

[27 January 2023 02:00 · Josh Marcus]

High winds again ground helicopters in the search for actor Julian Sands

High winds have again grounded helicopters in the search for British actor Julian Sands.

Two weeks have now passed since Sands was first reported missing in the San Gabriel mountains in California on January 13, with numerous searches on foot and from the air having taken place.

Aerial efforts resumed briefly on Wednesday, with authorities using new technology that can detect electronic devices and credit cards.

San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department said it was “hopeful” that the technology would be able to more accurately pinpoint an area on which to focus efforts.

Mike Bedigan has more details on the search in his full report.

[27 January 2023 05:00 · Josh Marcus]

How the climate crisis is causing a string of missing hikers in California

On a clear day, the peak of southern California’s 10,000ft Mount Baldy looms over the Los Angeles skyline.

The mountain is emblematic of a growing threat: the deadly impact of the climate crisis on one of America’s favourite pastimes, the great outdoors.

This month, as climate-amped superstorms battered California, first responders have carried out 14 rescue missions on Mount Baldy’s peak, the highest summit in the San Gabriel mountain range.

More details in our in-depth look at the situation on Mount Baldy and beyond.

[27 January 2023 06:30 · Josh Marcus]

‘This feels like a nightmare,’ friend says of search for Julian Sands

The search for British actor Julian Sands feels like a “nightmare” to those who love him, according to Dr Daisy Dunn, a classicist and friend of the Sands family.

“Julian is a very dear friend and this feels like a nightmare,” she wrote on Twitter on Thursday. “All my thoughts are with his family. I pray that the new search leads to good news and his safe return.”

[27 January 2023 07:59 · Josh Marcus]

ICMYI: Julian Sands went missing while ‘doing what he loved best'

The family of missing movie star Julian Sands say he was doing what he loved best when he vanished – as they released the last known images of him mountaineering.

With the hunt for the British actor in the California mountains continuing, poignant photographs that he sent to his grandson show him looking relaxed and happy while climbing well above the clouds.

Mr Sands, who starred in more than 150 films and television series including A Room with a View, sent the pictures of himself climbing the Weisshorn mountain in the Swiss Alps to his grandson last September.

Jane Dalton has the story.

[27 January 2023 10:30 · Josh Marcus]

Brother of Julian Sands says he has ‘come to terms’ with disappearance

Actor Julian Sands has been missing for nearly two weeks, leading some in his family to begin the grieving process.

“I have come to terms with the fact he’s gone and for me that’s how I’ve dealt with it,” Nick Sands, his brother, told the BBC.

“We are all still hoping I guess, but I know he’s gone in my mind and because of that I’ve already said my goodbyes,” he added.

[27 January 2023 13:00 · Josh Marcus]

Couple shares touching story about Julian Sands

Julian Sands, in addition to being an acclaimed actor, was an accomplished mountaineer.

As the search for the missing British actor continues, a couple who climbed Mount Kilimajaro with Mr Sands shared a touching story about him, describing how he “regaled” them with Shakespeare and Keats, and saved a special stone from the mountain for their engagement gift.

Read about their experience below.