Dad tries trying to save stepson, 14, who also died during hike Marufo Vega Trail at the Big Bend National Park, amid searing temperatures.
A Florida father and his teen stepson were both found dead Friday in separate parts of a Texas national park after the 14-year-old boy passed out while on a family hike in searing heat which had reached temperatures as high as 119 degrees, officials said.
The teenager fell ill and lost consciousness around 6 p.m. while he, his stepfather and 21-year-old brother were hiking on the Marufo Vega Trail at the Big Bend National Park, park officials said in a statement.
The father quickly ran back to their vehicle to find help while the older brother tried to carry his sibling back to the trailhead.
Stepfather crashed while looking for help
Authorities reached the boy and his brother around 7:30 p.m. where the young man was pronounced dead at the scene, the National Park Service said.
Just 30 minutes later, Park Rangers and US Border Patrol Agents spotted the father’s car, which crashed over the embankment at the Boquillas Overlook.
The 31-year-old was pronounced dead at the scene.
‘The Marufo Vega Trail winds through extremely rugged desert and rocky cliffs within the hottest part of Big Bend National Park,’ the agency said in a statement. ‘No shade or water makes this strenuous trail dangerous to attempt in the heat of summer.’
Big Bend is experiencing extreme heat with highs reaching 110-119 degrees at low elevations and along the Rio Grande, park officials said.
The names of the two victims were not released by park officials.
The incident remains under investigation.
Not immediately clear is what compelled the Florida family to go hiking amid extreme temperatures and whether they had underestimated the ease of the Texas hiking trail.
