News Release
Courtesy Rocky Mountain National Park
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Contact: Kyle Patterson
Contact: Park Information Office, (970) 586-1206
Search efforts continued today in Rocky Mountain National Park for Lucas Macaj, 23, of Colorado Springs, Colorado. Search operations today have been hampered by strong winds, white out conditions and low visibility. Teams were unable to be safely inserted today in the Loft area and the Keyhole Route on Longs Peak due to these conditions. Search members hiked/snowshoed above Black Lake and glassed the area below The Trough as well as the terrain below The Ledges.Macaj was reported overdue late Sunday night after attempting to summit Longs Peak on Sunday, May 12. Early Monday morning, rangers confirmed his vehicle was still parked at the Longs Peak Trailhead. Macaj was last heard from at approximately 1 p.m. Sunday, May 12, when he texted a friend indicating that he was on the summit of Longs Peak. Significant storms moved through high elevations in the park Sunday afternoon.
Macaj started from the Longs Peak Trailhead early Sunday, to summit Longs Peak via the Keyhole Route. He is likely wearing a dark colored top, tan or brown pants, khaki-colored boots, and a black backpack. He may also be wearing a beanie and dark colored gloves. Macaj is described as 5’9,” 155 pounds, with brown hair and green eyes.
Search efforts on Monday included air reconnaissance, a heat sensing fixed-wing flight and ground teams on the Longs Peak Trail to the Ledges on the Keyhole Route. Search efforts also took place on the Boulder Brook Trail. Air reconnaissance has focused on the Keyhole Route including The Ledges, The Trough, The Narrows, The Homestretch and the saddle between Longs Peak and Mount Meeker. Park rangers are also continuing investigations.
Assisting Rocky Mountain National Park Search and Rescue Team members with air reconnaissance yesterday included Flight for Life Air Ambulance and aircraft from the State of Colorado Division of Fire Prevention and Control (DFPC) including a fixed wing aircraft outfitted with infrared and color sensors and a helitak crew for helicopter air reconnaissance.
If you have information that could help investigators, if you may have seen Lucas Macaj, or if you were in the areas listed above on May 12, please contact us. You don't have to tell us who you are, but please tell us what you know. CALL the National Park Service Investigative Services Bureau Tip Line 888-653-0009, ONLINE form www.nps.gov/ISB or EMAIL nps_isb@nps.gov
Last updated: May 17, 2024