Missing hunters found in Saguache County

Colorado Army National Guard helicopters helped locate two men Thursday morning who disappeared while hunting outside of Saguache, in Saguache County.

Salvador Garcia, 82, of Saguache, and Allan Martinez, 62 of Colorado Springs, were driving back from hunting on Wednesday when their car overheated, said Saguache County Sheriff Mike Norris.

The men spent Wednesday night in their car five miles north of the Saguache County Airport, and were able to turn it on periodically throughout the night to stay warm. The men left to hunt at 8 a.m. Wednesday, and were expected back by 4 p.m. Wednesday. When they didn't return, the sheriff was called.

"I had people out all over the mountains looking," Norris said Thursday.

The helicopter joined area law enforcement and search and rescue teams looking for the men.

In the end, the helicopter left the search to refuel and a passer-by found the men at 11 a.m., Norris said. The men fired shots from the area where the parked their car, attracting the attention of the passer-by. Neither of the men were injured, Norris said.

The helicopter, an OH-58 Kiowa manned by two Colorado Army National Guard soldiers, took off at 7:40 a.m. Thursday from Gypsum.

The chopper and foot crews searched five miles north of the Saguache County Airport. The area has been buried under 6 to 12 inches of snow, according to a National Guard report.