Storm Strands Hikers in Trabuco Canyon

I'm not sure why anybody would have wanted to go hiking on a day like yesterday, especially in an area where creeks can quickly turn into raging rivers with the kind of rain we had yesterday.  However, some folks tried to do it and, not surprisingly, found themselves in need of rescue:

Firefighters hope to rescue four more hikers Tuesday after they retrieved a group of five with a bulldozer who were stranded between Trabuco Canyon and Holy Jim Canyon roads on Monday night, authorities said early Tuesday.

Rescuers responded to reports of nine people stranded in the area by raging waters created by stormy weather just before 7:45 p.m. Monday, Orange County Fire Authority Capt. Greg McKeown said. They were believed to be a group of hikers who went into the area Monday afternoon.

Rescuers used a bulldozer to reach five people they had in sight, ferrying them across the river and into safety Monday night, McKeown said.

Four other hikers are believed to have headed further up the canyon and harder to reach due to a treacherous river crossing.

Authorities said they plan to reconvene at 7 a.m. Tuesday to re-evaluate the situation. McKeown said they will consider dispatching a helicopter to the area to rescue the remaining hikers. First, however, the pilot will have to assess whether it'll be safe enough to do so.

I've been listening to the Fire Department organizing the rescue this morning, though they apparently still don't know just where the four people are. A helicopter will be brought in shortly to search for their vehicle and hopefully the hikers. They're also trying to get cellphone hits off the hiker's phones to see if they can track them that way.

Seems like this whole "hiking in the foothills during an all day heavy rain event" wasn't terribly well thought out.

UPDATE:  Sounds like they've been located and a helicopter is ferrying them out to a safe spot.