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Car Found Off Cliff Possibly Linked To Missing North Hollywood Couple
Authorities have found a car and the bodies of one person and one dog off a cliff in San Luis Obispo. The tragic discovery may be linked to a young North Hollywood couple who went missing shortly before Christmas while on their way to Big Sur.California Highway Patrol responded to a call from State Parks authorities at about 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday regarding a tan car spotted over 300 feet below a cliff at Highway 1 near Ragged Point, KTLA reports. The bodies of a human and a dog were found near the wreckage, and officials did not immediately see anyone else inside the car, according to KSBY. No further details about the body have been released.
Recovery efforts have been complicated by a number of factors. Authorities described the car as "very mangled," according to The Tribune, and indicated that they have not been able to discern its license plate number or determine if it was the same tan, four-door Honda Civic driven by the missing couple. CHP also tweeted that this particular portion of Highway 1 has been closed due to rock slides. Thus, the car will not be removed from the area until later today.
Olivia Hannah Gonzalez, 20, and her boyfriend, Brian Fernandez, 21, were last seen on Friday, December 23. They were departing their North Hollywood home to spend the weekend in Big Sur. Around 1 p.m., Gonzalez sent her brother-in-law a text saying that they were about two hours away from Big Sur. That’s the last time anyone has seen or heard from the couple. The couple's family told the Daily News that the couple may have taken their two dogs—a husky and a golden retriever—with them on the trip. The location where the wreckage was discovered is less than 70 miles south of Big Sur, or about a 2-hour drive up the coast.
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