A woman who went missing at a Utah national park did not have her cell phone with her, adding a level of difficulty to the search effort.
As CrimeOnline previously reported, Holly Suzanne Courtier was last seen in a parking lot at Zion National Park in Utah on October 6 after having taken a shuttle bus to the trailheads. She did not appear at the shuttle bus for the return trip, and was reported missing by her family two days later.
Courtier, 38, lives in California, and had been traveling through the U.S. in a converted van since losing her nanny job due to the coronavirus pandemic. Her daughter, Kailey Chambers, told CBS Los Angeles that her mother was an experienced hiker and was familiar with Zion National Park, where the two had hiked together just a few months ago. Chambers also said that her mother had gone hiking alone in the past.
As USA Today reports, Zion National Park Deputy Chief Ranger Andrew Fitzgerald and Chief of Interpretation Amanda Rolland held a press conference on Tuesday with updates on the search for Courtier. The officials revealed that Courtier had left her cell phone in California, making it impossible for searchers to track her possible whereabouts with a cell phone signal. Her car, which she left behind due to park prohibitions against driving personal vehicles, was found in a neighboring town. There is no indication from the report that investigators found any possible evidence in the vehicle.
The park officials were reportedly optimistic that mild weather conditions may be helping Courtier survive if she is stranded somewhere in the park.
“Right now we are committed to finding Holly. We are going to keep searching as long as there are clues or leads,” Fitzgerald said at the press conference, according to USA Today. “We don’t have a predicted time when we would stop searching.”
Courtier’s daughter also said she was determined to keep searching until she finds her mother.
“I know she would not give up on me, so I refuse to give up on her,” Chambers told the TV station. “I don’t care if I’m the only person on the trail looking for her, I’m not going to stop until I find her.”
It does not appear that Courtier shared a specific itinerary with anyone, so rescuers are searching the park at large. The missing woman is described as 5 feet, 3 inches tall, weighing 100 pounds. Photos appear to show that she has brown hair and green or blue eyes.
She may be wearing a black Patagonia Nano puff jacket, Danner Trail hiking boots, and a gray trucker hat. Courtier may also have a cream-colored hoodie, a camouflage hammock, and a Rumple Nanoloft blanket.
Anyone with information is urged to contact the National Park Service tip line at (888) 653-0009.
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