By Mike Dougherty and Oren Liebermann

WHITESBURG, KY (CBS) – LaSalle University says 37 students and three staff members are safe Friday after being lost while hiking in Kentucky last night.

The group is in Kentucky volunteering with a home rebuilding charity similar to Habitat for Humanity. In their down time on Thursday afternoon, they went for a hike on a well-marked trail in the Appalachian Mountains.

Dean of Students Dr. James Moore says the darkness simply snuck up on them.

“It appears they stayed too long, and so when they started to head back, they got disorientated,” Dr. Moore explains.

Rescuers found the group at about 3:30 on Friday morning.

“Some of their phones worked, so they were able to call for help. And so the group was taken to a local hospital, everybody was examined,” Dr. Moore says.

He also says that everyone is fine. One student was kept at the hospital for observation for a pre-existing condition.
The group is scheduled to return home Saturday.