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| Fossett searchers 'spot wreckage' | Fossett searchers 'spot wreckage' |
| (20 minutes later) | |
| Teams searching for missing adventurer Steve Fossett have spotted what looks like the wreckage of a plane in eastern California, local police say. | Teams searching for missing adventurer Steve Fossett have spotted what looks like the wreckage of a plane in eastern California, local police say. |
| An aerial spotter made the discovery late on Wednesday, and teams are going to the area to investigate, a Madera County Sheriff's spokeswoman said. | An aerial spotter made the discovery late on Wednesday, and teams are going to the area to investigate, a Madera County Sheriff's spokeswoman said. |
| The search began after a hiker found items thought to belong to Mr Fossett. | The search began after a hiker found items thought to belong to Mr Fossett. |
| The 63-year-old vanished a year ago while on a solo flight that took off from neighbouring Nevada. | The 63-year-old vanished a year ago while on a solo flight that took off from neighbouring Nevada. |
| The millionaire businessman was officially declared dead in February. | The millionaire businessman was officially declared dead in February. |
| Wide-ranging searches had failed to find any trace of Mr Fossett or his plane following his disappearance. | Wide-ranging searches had failed to find any trace of Mr Fossett or his plane following his disappearance. |
| New search area | New search area |
| Identity documents bearing Mr Fossett's name - including a pilot's license - as well as cash and a sweatshirt were found by hiker Preston Morrow on Monday. | Identity documents bearing Mr Fossett's name - including a pilot's license - as well as cash and a sweatshirt were found by hiker Preston Morrow on Monday. |
| Our teams are going in to that area, and we hope to know whether it is really plane wreckage, and if it is Fossett's or someone else's Erica StuartMadera County Sheriff spokeswoman | |
| He had been returning from a mountain walk when he spotted the items in dirt and pine needles. | He had been returning from a mountain walk when he spotted the items in dirt and pine needles. |
| An employee at a sporting goods store, Mr Morrow said he handed them over to police after unsuccessful attempts to contact the Fossett family. | An employee at a sporting goods store, Mr Morrow said he handed them over to police after unsuccessful attempts to contact the Fossett family. |
| The BBC's Rajesh Mirchandani, in Los Angeles, says the items were found outside the vast area searched after Mr Fossett went missing - and also in a different direction to that in which he was thought to have flown. | The BBC's Rajesh Mirchandani, in Los Angeles, says the items were found outside the vast area searched after Mr Fossett went missing - and also in a different direction to that in which he was thought to have flown. |
| Mammoth Lakes has an elevation of about 7,800ft (2,400m) and is on the eastern side of the Sierra Nevada range. | Mammoth Lakes has an elevation of about 7,800ft (2,400m) and is on the eastern side of the Sierra Nevada range. |
| It is about 100 miles (160km) from where Mr Fossett began his flight. | It is about 100 miles (160km) from where Mr Fossett began his flight. |
| The Federal Aviation Administration, which would have issued the documentation, said it was confirming the documents' authenticity. | The Federal Aviation Administration, which would have issued the documentation, said it was confirming the documents' authenticity. |
| Storm coming | Storm coming |
| Teams led by the Madera County sheriffs department began a search of the area following Mr Morrow's discovery. | Teams led by the Madera County sheriffs department began a search of the area following Mr Morrow's discovery. |
| Mammoth Lake's community liaison officer, Stuart Brown, told the BBC that severe weather could hamper the search. | Mammoth Lake's community liaison officer, Stuart Brown, told the BBC that severe weather could hamper the search. |
| Mr Fossett was a world record-breaking adventurer | |
| "We've got six to 12 inches of snow coming in Friday night, Saturday, with high winds - our first big storm of the season - so we'll just have to see how that affects the search." | "We've got six to 12 inches of snow coming in Friday night, Saturday, with high winds - our first big storm of the season - so we'll just have to see how that affects the search." |
| But Erica Stuart, a spokeswoman for Madera County Sheriff's department, said what looked like plane wreckage had been spotted late on Wednesday night. | But Erica Stuart, a spokeswoman for Madera County Sheriff's department, said what looked like plane wreckage had been spotted late on Wednesday night. |
| "Our teams are going in to that area, and we hope to know whether it is really plane wreckage, and if it is Fossett's or someone else's, by morning," she was quoted by the San Francisco Chronicle as saying. | "Our teams are going in to that area, and we hope to know whether it is really plane wreckage, and if it is Fossett's or someone else's, by morning," she was quoted by the San Francisco Chronicle as saying. |
| Mr Fossett took off from the ranch of hotel magnate Barron Hilton, at Yerington, Nevada, on 3 September 2007 on a flight that was expected to last three hours. | Mr Fossett took off from the ranch of hotel magnate Barron Hilton, at Yerington, Nevada, on 3 September 2007 on a flight that was expected to last three hours. |
| In 2002, he became the first person to circle the globe solo in a balloon and had about 100 other world records to his name. | In 2002, he became the first person to circle the globe solo in a balloon and had about 100 other world records to his name. |