2023-08-06 19:30:02
PHOENIX (AP) — An Oregon woman who went missing while hiking north of Phoenix has been found unresponsive, an apparent heat-related death, authorities said.
The Phoenix Fire Department reports that Jessica Christine Lindstrom, 34, went on a hike around 8:30 a.m. Friday and was declared missing by Phoenix police regarding nine hours later.
Fire Department Capt. Scott Douglas said drones and technical rescue teams were used during a five-hour search before Lindstrom’s body was found on a remote trail on the north side of Deem Hills Recreation Area.
Douglas explained that it will be up to the Maricopa County Medical Examiner’s Office to determine the cause of death, but preliminary information suggests that Lindstrom was overcome by heat during the hike.
“Unfortunately, Mrs. Lindstrom was visiting the city from Oregon, where it’s not that hot,” Douglas said.
Authorities said Lindstrom, who previously lived in the Phoenix suburb of Peoria, was a registered nurse in Oregon visiting family members.
Maricopa County, the state’s most populous, reported Wednesday that 39 heat-related deaths have been confirmed this year as of July 29, with another 312 deaths under investigation.
In the same period last year there were 42 confirmed heat-related deaths in the county and another 282 were under investigation.
Maricopa County, which includes Phoenix, reported 425 heat-related deaths in all of 2022, more than half of them in July.
The National Weather Service noted that July was the hottest month on record for Phoenix, with an average temperature of 39.28 degrees Celsius (102.7 Fahrenheit). That surpassed the previous record of 37.28 C (99.1 F) set in August 2020.
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