Latest news with #Buenafe
UPI
17 hours ago
- 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
17 hours ago
- 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
a day ago
- 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.
2 days ago
Search ongoing for cruise ship passenger who didn't return from Alaska hike: Police
A search is ongoing for a 62-year-old cruise passenger who went missing while on a hike in Alaska, authorities said Thursday. Marites Buenafe, of Kentucky, was reported missing Tuesday, a day after her birthday, when she did not return to the cruise ship Norwegian Bliss, according to the Alaska State Troopers. That morning, she had texted her family "stating she was heading up Mount Roberts Tramway and then planned to hike Gold Ridge to Gastineau Peak," the Alaska State Troopers stated in a missing person bulletin. Buenafe was captured on security footage at the top of Mount Roberts Tramway at about 7:30 a.m. local time Tuesday, troopers said. She was reported missing to local state troopers Tuesday afternoon when she did not return to the ship by the all-aboard time while docked in Juneau, a Norwegian Cruise Line spokesperson said. Rescue crews have conducted a ground search, and the aerial search has included thermal drones and helicopters, troopers said. On Wednesday, over a dozen professional volunteers from Juneau Mountain Rescue and SEADOGS joined state troopers and Juneau police officers "for an extensive search using drones, K-9s, and ground teams, with no signs of Marites," Alaska State Troopers said in a dispatch. "Weather conditions allowed limited helicopter searches late in the day," it added. The ground and aerial search is ongoing Thursday, troopers said. Norwegian Cruise Line is "providing assistance to local authorities as appropriate" amid the search, the spokesperson said, adding, "Our CARE team is providing support to the guest's family and our thoughts are with them during this difficult time." Buenafe is 5 feet tall and weighs 118 pounds, with black hair and brown eyes, troopers said. Anyone with information on her whereabouts is asked to contact the Alaska State Troopers in Juneau at 907-465-4000 and reference incident AK25063914.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
Cruise passenger vanishes during solo hike in Alaska, prompting urgent search
A Norwegian Cruise Line passenger was reported missing in Alaska. Marties Buenafe, 62, texted family that she was going for a hike in Juneau on July 1, but did not return to the Norwegian Bliss ship for its scheduled 1:30 p.m. departure, the Alaska State Troopers said in a July 2 bulletin. A Norwegian spokesperson said a guest was reported missing after they missed the vessel's all-aboard time. 'An active search is ongoing, and we are providing assistance to local authorities as appropriate,' they told USA TODAY in an emailed statement. 'Our CARE team is providing support to the guest's family and our thoughts are with them during this difficult time.' The ship eventually left the port and continued its week-long Alaska cruise sailing that departed from Seattle on June 28, according to CruiseMapper. She told family by text message around 7:30 a.m. that she planned to hike to Gastineau Peak – a mountain in the area – via Gold Ridge, and was going up Mount Roberts Tramway, according to the state troopers. 'Security footage showed her at the top of Mount Roberts Tramway departing the buildings at about 0730 hours,' the bulletin said. 'Searches of the area have been unsuccessful in locating her.' Authorities urged anyone with information or who has had contact with Buenafe to call 907-465-4000 with the reference number AK25063914. Nathan Diller is a consumer travel reporter for USA TODAY based in Nashville. You can reach him at ndiller@ This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Norwegian cruise guest reported missing after missing all-aboard time
