62-year-old cruise passenger found deceased days after solo hike
The authorities have found the body of Marites "Tess" Buenafe, a 62-year-old cruise passenger who went missing during her solo hike.
Juneau Police Department in Alaska reported that the body of Buenafe, a doctor from Kentucky, had been found two days after she had gone missing.
She was reported missing on July 1 at around 3 p.m. after she failed to return to her cruise ship, which was scheduled to depart at 1:30 p.m. that same day.
Her last contact with her family was on the morning of the same day when she informed them that she would hike to Gold Ride to Gastineau Peak, a popular 4.1-mile trek in Alaska. Per the authorities, security footage showed that she was last seen at the top of the Mount Roberts Tramway and had not been located since.
According to the tracking site CruiseMapper, the ship departed from Seattle for a round-trip tour of Alaska. Buenafe was on a trip alone.
The authorities said they have "conducted a ground search and utilized thermal drones." The search and rescue continued until July 3, when she was found approximately 1,700 feet below the ridge line of Gold Ridge. Her body will be sent to the state medical examiner's office for an autopsy.
Buenafe was a physician at the University of Kentucky, specializing in Family Medicine. According to U.S. News and World Report, she had been in practice for more than 20 years.
She received her degree from Case Western Reserve University and completed her residency in family medicine at the Mayo Clinic.
She was remembered as "the most caring colleague" and "an invested and kind physician for the students at the University of Kentucky."
