College Professor ID'd as Hiker Found Dead in Thousand Palms

A 71-year-old man whose body was found in a wash in the Thousand Palms Canyon area amid 120-degree heat was identified Tuesday as a Loyola Marymount College professor.

Alan Hogenauer of Cerritos apparently died of exposure while hiking in the withering heat. An autopsy is pending, according to the Riverside County Coroner's Office.

Someone notified sheriff's deputies about Hogenauer missing in Coachella Valley Preserve at 3:18 p.m. Saturday, Riverside County sheriff's Sgt. Angel Ramos said.

Search teams fanned out under 120-degree heat to find Hogenauer, and his body was spotted by someone in a sheriff's helicopter about 10 a.m. Sunday in a wash about a half-mile from the preserve's visitor center.

Hogenauer was a Loyola Marymount University professor whose wife and 12- year-old son had been hiking with him in the preserve, but they decided to turn back, according to the Desert Sun.  Hogenauer reportedly wanted to continue hiking despite the midday heat, and he later called family members, saying he needed water.

Hogenauer taught in the College of Business Administration for more than 15 years and worked in travel market research.

– City News Service