“It is with a broken heart and through tears that I give you this update,” a family member wrote when announcing their bodies had been recovered
Two hunters who have been missing for nearly a week in southern Colorado have been found dead, according to a family member. One man was set to get married in just a few months.
On Thursday, Sept. 18, Andrew Porter’s aunt, Lynne Runkle, shared that his body and that of his friend, Ian Stasko, had been recovered in an update on the GoFundMe page she created to help fund search and rescue efforts after the two 25-year-olds disappeared during a hunting trip in the Rio Grande National Forest.
“It is with a broken heart and through tears that I give you this update. Andrew and Ian have both been found deceased,” wrote Runkle, who did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment. “Their bodies were discovered earlier today by Colorado Search and Rescue”
She added, “Please keep Andrew’s and Ian’s families in your thoughts and prayers.”
The same day, the Conejos County Sheriff’s Office confirmed that two unidentified men had been recovered from the Rio de Los Pinos Trailhead at approximately 11 a.m. local time after extensive search efforts. “At this time, the individuals remain unidentified,” Sheriff Garth Crowther said, via a press release shared with PEOPLE. “The investigation is ongoing, and no further details are available pending identification and notification of next-of-kin.”
The two young men, both experienced hunters, were in the area to go elk hunting. Their last contact was made when Porter shared his location through a satellite device with his fiancée, Bridget Murphy, on Thursday, Sept. 11, around 2:45 p.m., she told The Colorado Sun. He had been giving Murphy and his family updates every few hours until that last communication.
By Saturday, Sept. 13, deputies from the sheriff’s office arrived at the Rio De Los Pinos Trailhead following reports that the two men were overdue, per press releases shared with PEOPLE. According to officials, they had “failed to check in with loved ones at a predetermined time.”
Emergency responders located the hunters’ vehicle, but they weren’t anywhere in sight. “Camping gear and backpacks were located in the vehicle, prompting deputies to become concerned due to heavy rain and bad weather,” authorities said, via release. A “massive search” was then launched, involving teams in the air, county and state crew members on the ground, as well as dog teams, drones and local volunteers.
By Wednesday, Sept. 17, Murphy shared an update on Facebook that the two men had been seen alive on the morning of Friday, Sept. 12. “This gives us one more night we know they were safe,” she wrote at the time.
She added, “We think now that they slept in car Thursday, tried out new spot Friday morning where they were spotted, didn’t like it as much — and came back to main trailhead they’d been at Friday by 11 a.m.”
As Murphy urged people to help in the search, she continued to hold onto hope that she’d see her fiancé, who she was set to marry in a few months, again, per The Sun.
Murphy explained to The Sun that both Porter and Stasko were “very prepared outdoorsmen.” But she was aware that whatever occurred “depends on if they were in sound mind, if they were disoriented or panicked, or if they were already hypothermic. We’re just not sure. So there’s a lot of teams out looking.”
The day after the interview ran, the bodies of both men were found.
The sheriff praised the tremendous effort it took to find the two men. “This collaborative effort reflects the strength of our community and the unwavering dedication to every volunteer and agency involved,” Crowther wrote in the release. “We are proud of the perseverance demonstrated throughout the search.”
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For the loved ones the two men left behind, it’s the end of their hopes for a positive outcome.
Before Porter and Stasko were found, Murphy wrote one more post. “Another morning. Andrew, and Ian, I will not stop until we find you. I will not give up,” Murphy wrote on Sept. 18.
She added at the time, “These people today are ready to work as hard as possible to find you. We love you. We are here. We won’t stop. Everyone pray for these people going out Today, pray for their strength to keep going. To find our guys.”
