Hiker dies of apparent heat-related illness at Big Bend Ranch State Park
A 59-year-old man died from an apparent heat-related illness while hiking at Big Bend Ranch State Park last weekend, according to officials.
The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department tells MySA.com Jay Bickers started experiencing signs of a heat-related illness while hiking with his three children from the West Contrabando trail to the Whit Roy trail on Saturday morning.
READ ALSO: Public turtle hatchings are still on hiatus at Padre Island National Seashore
His children continued on the trail to search for help, TPWD says.
Officials conducted thorough searches for Bickers and found his remains on Father’s Day morning. It is unclear where Bickers is from.
This is the second heat-related death in TPWD’s fiscal year, which runs from September 1 to August 31. The first one was at Lake Brownwood State Park on September 1, 2020.
State park police officers worked with Texas Game Wardens, a K9 officer, border patrol, park staff, TexSAR, Brewster County Sheriff’s Deputies, and officers from the Texas Department of Public Safety to conduct the search.
Big Bend Ranch State Park, a 311,000-acre park, is located on the Rio Grande in Brewster and Presidio counties, in West Texas.
