LOS ANGELES (CNS) — Authorities confirmed Wednesday, Jan. 4, that a body found over the side of Pacific Coast Highway in San Luis Obispo County was that of a woman who went missing along with her boyfriend after they left for a pre-Christmas road trip to Big Sur.
Olivia Hannah Gonzalez, 20, and Brian Fernandez, 21, left Dec. 23 on what was to be a weekend trip, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.
On Tuesday, Jan. 3, a car since identified as the Honda Civic the couple took on their trip was found over the side of the roadway, and the woman’s body was found nearby. Positive identification was made Wednesday afternoon, said LAPD Officer Jenny Hauser, but Fernandez remains missing.
Firefighters were called about 3:35 p.m. Tuesday to the crash scene south of Ragged Point in the San Simeon area, which had been spotted by a helicopter crew, said Tony Cipolla of the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Department.
Gonzalez’s body was recovered by rescue crews on Tuesday night, Cipolla said.
Her body was found along with a dead dog about 15 feet from the car, which was about 325 feet over the side of PCH, California Highway Patrol Officer Patrick Seebart told the San Luis Obispo-based newspaper, The Tribune.
Crews will continue looking for Fernandez, but their efforts were being hampered by heavy rain in the rugged area.
The last word from the pair was about 11:40 a.m. Dec. 23, when Gonzalez texted her brother-in-law to say they were about two hours away from Big Sur and a woman reported seeing them that day near where the vehicle was found.