Latest news with #Buenafe
New York Post
08-07-2025
- Health
- New York Post
Tourist who missed Norwegian cruise ship discovered dead on mountain trail in Alaska
A tourist who went missing after she failed to return to her cruise ship last week has been found dead. Marites Buenafe, 62, of Kentucky, was visiting Alaska's capital city when she did not return from a hike. The Alaska Department of Public Safety said her body was found by an Alaska Army National Guard helicopter crew late Thursday below the ridge line of Gold Ridge. Buenafe is listed as a doctor at UK HealthCare, a system of hospitals and clinics of the University of Kentucky. State troopers and Juneau Mountain Rescue were able to recover Buenafe's body with help from Temsco Helicopters and the National Guard. Marites Buenafe, 62, of Kentucky, was visiting Alaska's capital city when she did not return from a hike. ALASKA STATE TROOPERS Her family has been notified of her death and her body will be sent to the state's medical examiner's office for an autopsy, the Associated Press reported. On July 1, the Juneau Police Department heard from Buenafe's relatives that she had left for a hike that morning and had plans to take a popular tourist tram partially up a mountain overlooking downtown Juneau before walking to Gastineau Peak and Gold Ridge, according to the state Department of Public Safety. She had gotten off the Norwegian Bliss and did not return to the vessel by its departure time. Norwegian Bliss cruise ship docked oh the west side of Manhattan after a week at sea. John Roca 'We are deeply saddened to learn of the passing of the guest,' a spokesperson for Norwegian Cruise Line said in a statement to Fox News Digital. 'Our CARE team is providing support to the guest's family and our thoughts are with them during this difficult time.'
Yahoo
05-07-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Body of hiking cruise passenger found in Alaska
July 4 (UPI) -- Rescuers in Alaska recovered the body of a 62-year-old woman who went on a hike in the mountains near Juneau after leaving the Norwegian Bliss cruise ship. Marites Buenafe, a medical doctor from Kentucky, was a passenger on the Norwegian Bliss, which was a seven-day round-trip from Seattle. Her body was found on Thursday, the Alaska Department of Public Safety State Troopers announced. Around 7:30 a.m. Tuesday, she texted family members that she was going up going up Mount Roberts Tramway in Juneau and would hike from Gold Ridge to Gastineau Peak, the troopers reported. Security footage showed Buenafe at the top of the tramway. The 4-mile hike is challenging and usually takes three hours, hiking website AllTrails states. The ship was scheduled to depart around 1:30 p.m. At around 3:15, Buenafe was reported missing. Juneau Mountain Rescue searched on the ground and used thermal drones to scan the area, the Alaska Department of Public Safety said. Also, an Alaska Wildlife Troopers helicopter and a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter conducted aerial searches, the department said. The search continued Wednesday with more than a dozen professional volunteers, as well as Juneau police officers, Alaska state troopers and Juneau Mountain Rescue. Also utilized were drones and K-9s. Helicopter use was limited because of windy conditions. The search resumed Thursday. At 11:56 a.m., Alaska Army National Guard helicopter crew located Buenafe's body some approximately 1,700 feet below the ridge line of Gold Ridge, the Alaska Department of Public Safety said. Crews then recovered her body, which was taken to the state medical examiner's office for autopsy. Buenafe was listed on the University of Kentucky Healthcare system's website as a doctor. DPS spokesperson Austin McDaniel told KYES-TV it is important to inform somebody of hiking plans. "If you don't return on time, they can alert first responders, alert search and rescue teams, the troopers, so we can immediately begin formulating a plan and activating resources to help get you out of the field," McDaniel said.
UPI
04-07-2025
- Health
- UPI
Body of hiking cruise passenger found in Alaska
July 4 (UPI) -- Rescuers in Alaska recovered the body of a 62-year-old woman who went on a hike in the mountains near Juneau after leaving the Norwegian Bliss cruise ship. Marites Buenafe, a medical doctor from Kentucky, was a passenger on the Norwegian Bliss, which was a seven-day round-trip from Seattle. Her body was found on Thursday, the Alaska Department of Public Safety State Troopers announced. Around 7:30 a.m. Tuesday, she texted family members that she was going up going up Mount Roberts Tramway in Juneau and would hike from Gold Ridge to Gastineau Peak, the troopers reported. Security footage showed Buenafe at the top of the tramway. The 4-mile hike is challenging and usually takes three hours, hiking website AllTrails states. The ship was scheduled to depart around 1:30 p.m. At around 3:15, Buenafe was reported missing. Juneau Mountain Rescue searched on the ground and used thermal drones to scan the area, the Alaska Department of Public Safety said. Also, an Alaska Wildlife Troopers helicopter and a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter conducted aerial searches, the department said. The search continued Wednesday with more than a dozen professional volunteers, as well as Juneau police officers, Alaska state troopers and Juneau Mountain Rescue. Also utilized were drones and K-9s. Helicopter use was limited because of windy conditions. The search resumed Thursday. At 11:56 a.m., Alaska Army National Guard helicopter crew located Buenafe's body some approximately 1,700 feet below the ridge line of Gold Ridge, the Alaska Department of Public Safety said. Crews then recovered her body, which was taken to the state medical examiner's office for autopsy. Buenafe was listed on the University of Kentucky Healthcare system's website as a doctor. DPS spokesperson Austin McDaniel told KYES-TV it is important to inform somebody of hiking plans. "If you don't return on time, they can alert first responders, alert search and rescue teams, the troopers, so we can immediately begin formulating a plan and activating resources to help get you out of the field," McDaniel said.
USA Today
04-07-2025
- USA Today
Body of Alaska cruise passenger found 1,700 feet below ridge line of intended hike
The body of a Norwegian Cruise Line passenger who went missing in Alaska has been recovered. Marites Buenafe, 62, vanished Tuesday after texting her family that she was going for a hike in Juneau, according to an Alaska State Troopers missing persons bulletin. She was reported missing after not returning to the Norwegian Bliss on time that afternoon. On Thursday, an Alaska Army National Guard helicopter spotted her body roughly 1,700 feet below the ridge line of the area she planned to hike, state troopers shared in an update via Juneau Police. 'Troopers and Juneau Mountain Rescue were able to recover her body with the assistance of Temsco Helicopters and the National Guard,' read the troopers' Facebook post, which thanked the agencies and volunteers involved. Disappearance timeline State troopers said Buenafe texted her family at around 7:30 a.m. Tuesday, saying she was headed to Mount Roberts Tramway and planned to hike Gold Ridge to Gastineau Peak. Security footage showed her leaving the buildings at the top of Mount Roberts Tramway at about that time. She was supposed to return to the Norwegian Bliss by 1 p.m. that day, for the ship's scheduled 1:30 p.m. departure. A Norwegian spokesperson said multiple attempts were made to contact the guest before the ship departed. CruiseMapper shows the Bliss continuing on its week-long Alaska cruise sailing, which originated in Seattle on June 28. Search and recovery Multiple agencies searched the Gold Ridge area until Buenafe's body was recovered below the ridge line of Gold Ridge at around noon Thursday. 'Her next of kin have been notified, and her body will be sent to the state medical examiner's office for autopsy,' according to Alaska State Troopers. Norwegian told USA TODAY it's assisting local authorities in the investigation. Also, 'Our CARE team is providing support to the guest's family and our thoughts are with them during this difficult time.' Contributing: Nathan Diller, USA TODAY
New York Post
04-07-2025
- Health
- New York Post
Kentucky doctor, 62, mysteriously vanishes after leaving Norwegian cruise ship for solo hike in Alaska
A Kentucky doctor mysteriously vanished after leaving a Norwegian cruise ship for a solo hike in Alaska, prompting a large-scale search for the missing passenger. Marites Buenafe, 62, was reported missing around 3:18 p.m. Tuesday after she failed to return to the Norwegian Bliss before its 1:30 p.m. departure from Juneau, according to the Alaska State Troopers. The primary care physician, who works at University of Kentucky HealthCare in Lexington, texted her family around 7:30 a.m., saying she was taking the Mount Roberts Tramway to hike Gold Ridge to Gastineau Peak. Advertisement 5 Marites Buenafe mysteriously vanished during a Norwegian Cruise in Alaska on July 1, 2025. ALASKA STATE TROOPERS Police said she was last seen on security footage leaving the building at the tramway's top stop around the same time she sent her final text. 'We remain optimistic that we will find Marites alive,' Austin McDaniel, a department spokesperson, told the New York Times Thursday. Advertisement Police launched a multi-agency ground and aerial search for the lost traveler, deploying helicopters, thermal drones, and K-9s along the popular hiking trail — but have so far come up empty. McDaniel said authorities have concentrated the emergency response in the mountains south of downtown Juneau. Buenafe earned her medical degree from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine in Ohio and has practiced medicine for over 20 years, according to the healthcare system's website. 5 Norwegian Cruise's Norwegian Bliss sails through John Hopkins Inlet in Glacier Bay, Alaska on July 11, 2019. Bloomberg via Getty Images Advertisement 5 Buenafe works as a primary care physician at the University of Kentucky HealthCare in Lexington. ALASKA STATE TROOPERS She currently works as a family medicine doctor at Albert B. Chandler Hospital. Norwegian Cruise Line, which began the seven-day voyage from Seattle on Saturday, said it is assisting local authorities. 'An active search is ongoing, and we are providing assistance to local authorities as appropriate,' a spokesperson for the cruise line told People. Advertisement 'Our CARE team is providing support to the guest's family and our thoughts are with them during this difficult time.' 5 Buenafe currently works at Albert B. Chandler Hospital. ALASKA STATE TROOPERS 5 Norwegian Cruise Line, which began the seven-day voyage from Seattle on Saturday, said it is assisting local authorities. It's unclear whether the nearly 1,100-foot vessel, with multiple scheduled stops in Alaska and Canada, has remained in the state capital — its third stop — during the search. The ship is scheduled to return to Seattle on Saturday, according to CruiseMapper. Norwegian did not immediately respond to The Post's request for comment due to the July 4 holiday.
