Two elk hunters who went missing in the wilderness for a week were tragically killed by a lightning strike, according to the coroner’s report. Andrew Porter and Ian Stasko, both aged 25, were struck by lightning while hunting on the Rio de los Pinos trail in the National Forest of Colorado, as confirmed by Conejos County Coroner Richard Martin.
The hunters were discovered beneath a tree with minor burns on their bodies. Coroner Martin described these burns as comparable to those caused by a matchstick, with only a few present. Although the exact time of their deaths remains undetermined, it is believed that they perished instantaneously. Martin emphasized the rapid and immediate nature of their demise, likening it to a split-second transition from life to death.
The full autopsy results for Porter, hailing from Asheville, North Carolina, and Stasko, from Salt Lake City, Utah, are anticipated in approximately eight weeks. Despite the ongoing investigation, the coroner expressed confidence in his initial conclusions.
Search and rescue teams located the remains of Porter and Stasko around 11 am on Thursday following an extensive week-long search operation. Porter’s aunt previously suggested that the young hunters may have been caught off guard by passing storms in the national park.
Porter had last shared his location with his fiancée, Bridget Murphy, via a satellite device at 3 pm on September 11, near the trailhead where his car was parked. Murphy, in a Facebook post, confirmed the lightning strike as the cause of their instantaneous passing, emphasizing that they were not at fault and did not experience fear or pain in their final moments.
The Mirror has reached out to Coroner Martin for further comments regarding this tragic incident.