Authorities have confirmed that the woman, a Nevadan woman, who was found hanging on to a tree high up on a steep slope had disappeared.
Gayle Stewart, 64 years old, was reported missing by the National Park Service on March 14. This is one month after Gayle disappeared in February. Searchers have been scouring Lake Mead National Recreation Area, where the Reno woman was taking photographs, the park service said.
According to the statement, she was last seen wearing black long-sleeved, black shirt, black shoes, and black leggings. She has blonde hair, blue eyes and is 5 feet, 8 inches tall, investigators said. Stewart, who has been missing for 10 days, did not return to her car in the Bypass Bridge parking area in southeastern Nevada, near Hoover Dam. Stewart is approximately 475 mi away.
“She did not have her phone or any identification on her at the time,”According to the park service.
When she failed to return from a hike, the grandmother was reported as missing in Reno. According to authorities, she was found hours later by a close friend of her son. Mathew Stewart and his friends joined searchers in the woods near Alum Creek, a popular area for hikers along the Truckee River, near downtown Reno.
“A friend of the son found her injured and stranded on a steep slope,”Reno Fire Department assisted in search-and-rescue operations and helped to extract the woman.StatementFeb. 15.
Rescuers were able to rescue the victims. “miraculous”Authorities announced that the woman was recovered from her cold and dehydrated condition. She had fallen and injured herself and managed to hang on to the tree for several hours. Searchers formed a human chain to ferry Stewart from the sheer and slippery terrain.
It was “actually kind of a miracle story,”Reno Fire Department Battalion chief Seth Williams, said KOLO-TV in that moment. “The son called up some friends to start searching for her and one of the boys just decided to head off this cliff thinking maybe she fell down there and found her clinging to a tree. He claimed that she had said nothing. ‘help’ and then didn’t talk anymore.“
Mathew Stewart’s son posted on his Facebook page Sunday. “The smile I have is yours. You showed me the power of positivity. You taught me how to be happy and grew me into a man. My heart aches.”
The son posted on March 17. “Mom. Wherever you are I hope you are not in pain and you have found your peace. You were the sweetest person I ever knew. You raised me and helped me become who I am today. Your fun loving spirit and positive outlook on the world is something to be admired. I will always remember all the fun we had together. Love you always!”
Mathew Stewart did not respond to an interview request that Inside Edition Digital sent him Wednesday.