The Brief
63-year-old Long Beach resident Julie Elizabeth Goforth went missing while dirt biking with a friend at El Mirage Dry Lake.
Goforth told her friend she was heading back to her vehicle to rest, but she and her dirt bike were nowhere to be found.
Authorities are highly concerned for her safety due to severe summer heat and the likelihood that she has no water.
SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY, Calif. – A search is urgently underway in the Mojave Desert for an at-risk 63-year-old woman who went missing while riding dirt bikes in the Mojave Desert.
Authorities and search-and-rescue teams are asking for the public’s assistance in locating her as concerns mount over extreme weather conditions.
What we know
On Friday, July 10, Julie Elizabeth Goforth was riding dirt bikes with a friend at the El Mirage Dry Lake Off Highway Recreation Area, located at 20471 Mountain View Road in Adelanto, according to the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department.
Officials said Goforth decided to head back to their parked vehicle to rest and became separated from her companion. When the friend later returned to the vehicle, Goforth was nowhere to be found.
Julie Goforth / San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department
Goforth is described as 5 feet 7 inches tall, weighing 140 pounds, with blonde hair and blue eyes. She was wearing a white shirt paired with white and black dirt bike pants.
She was last seen riding a gray and white Kawasaki KLX 300R dirt bike.
What we don’t know
It’s unclear which direction Goforth headed when she rode away, or if her dirt bike suffered a mechanical failure or crash that prevented her return.
Officials have not yet confirmed if any trace of her gear, tracks, or bike has been discovered since the search began.
What they’re saying
Over the last few days, Julie’s son-in-law, Alex Krist, has been leading a search and rescue effort by family and friends to help find Julie.
“She’s a special person, she’s done a lot of great things, she’s a great grandmother, we just want her to come home,” said Krist.
“It’s the most bizarre thing to hear that somebody you love and care for is gone,” said Julie Goforth’s friend, Stella Sanchez.
“She’s just one of those people that reaches out to every single person she meets and she is just the sweetest, kindest lady ever and her family is so wonderful, we just need to find her, we just have to,” said Sanchez.
What’s next
The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue teams, alongside Aviation division support, will continue scouring the rugged desert landscape of the El Mirage Off Highway Recreation Area.
What you can do
If you have any information regarding Julie Goforth’s whereabouts, or if you were in the El Mirage Dry Lake area on July 10 and saw a rider matching her description, you are urged to contact Detective Harris at the Victor Valley Sheriff’s Station at 760-552-6800. To remain anonymous, call or text REPORT to We-Tip at 844-909-3006. You can also submit an online tip via the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department reporting portal at mobile.catapultems.com/sbcsd/Sites.
The Source
This report is based on information provided by the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department.