Early last month, a local man made headlines when he turned up after four days lost in Malibu Creek State Park—following a multiagency rescue effort involving around 100 personnel and multiple helicopters and other resources.
Last week, he was handed a citation by California State Parks.
Marcelo Santos, 30, was cited on April 27 when he went to the Malibu/Lost Hills Sheriff’s Station to pick up his bag and other belongings, which he had left on a trail after he wandered down the side of a mountain in the park on April 1.
His citation was for violating Title 14 of the California Code of Regulations, Section 4319, for engaging in unsafe recreation, according to Angeles District Superintendent Craig Sap. The citation came about in large part because this was not Santos’ first time being rescued.
“He was the person that was the subject of a three-day search at Malibu Creek State Park April 2-4,” Sap described in an email to The Malibu Times. “While under normal circumstances, a park visitor would not have been cited for an incident of this nature; however, in a separate, March 8, search and rescue, state park rangers and Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue Team members searched for and located [Santos]. At the conclusion of the first rescue, a state park ranger warned him against engaging in unsafe recreation and advised him to remain on designated trails for his safety and for the protection of the park’s natural resources.”
Three days after being reported missing, Santos walked out of the back country without aid of rescuers, despite having suffered a knee injury. Two days later, he spoke at a press conference, describing how he lost his backpack and supplies and later tumbled down the side of a mountain. That conference made headlines across the state.
“He was going off trail and doing things that other visitors who need to be rescued don’t usually do,” Sap later described.
That type of citation—which is a misdemeanor and requires Santos to appear in court—is becoming more common, Sap said.
“We’re seeing more and more of it, the extreme things they’re doing,” he described. “A good portion of them are going to be from the age of 17 to 28, males, that range.”
One contributing factor, according to Sap, is the pressures of social media, which shows visitors not only off-the-beaten-path places to explore in parks, but also risky activities to try.
“We’ve cited several people in the last couple years for dangerous recreational activities, people climbing rock areas that need to be rescued,” he said, “A lot of times, it’s social media … it causes a snowball effect.”
Last week, Malibu Search and Rescue announced it was already on track to beat its latest annual rescue number, 162, set in 2017. Malibu SAR had engaged in 49 rescues from Jan. 1 – April 24. Peak visitor season has not yet begun in Malibu. According to SAR, the group also believes social media is to blame.
Search and Rescue also provided this advice, after sharing a story about Santos’ experience lost in the park: “Don’t panic, and stay put! We will find you. But, if you go on the move, locating you will take that much longer and be that much more difficult.”
Now, the increase in risky behavior is resulting in a tightening of enforcement.
“In the past we didn’t [issue citations]; we chalked it up to ‘People are going to do stupid things,’ and we’d admonish them one time,” Sap described. “Now, it’s becoming more and more frequent. We’re finding, they’re putting themselves at risk, but also the rescuers.”
During Santos’ April 6 press conference, he was asked whether he planned to go back out hiking after his injuries healed—Santos replied “yes” without hesitating.
