A Denton County woman was found safe after being lost inside Big Bend Ranch State Park for more than 30 hours last week.
A multi-agency search and rescue operation was initiated last Tuesday after 56-year-old Debra Staples of Roanoke was reported missing by her husband, according to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.
Staples’ husband had left on a bike ride that morning and she tried to catch up with him but was unable to, officials said in a news release. She reached a crossroads on a trail, took a wrong turn, then eventually ditched her bike because it got a flat tire.
Staples walked in a circle for about five hours before eventually coming up on her bike again so she took it with her as she continued walking the trail system.
She eventually reached the Sauceda Ranger Station — about 20 miles from where she was last seen — on Wednesday. Search crews were notified of her location and she was reunited with her family.
Crews and resources for the search, which began Tuesday and continued overnight into Wednesday with aerial searches utilizing drone thermal capabilities, involved Texas Game Wardens, State Park police, Big Bend Ranch State Park staff, unmanned aircraft system pilots, a K9 search team and agencies like the U.S. Border Patrol, Presidio County Sheriff’s Office, Texas Department of Public Safety and El Paso Fire Department.
Big Bend State Ranch State Park is Texas’ largest state park at more than 300,000 acres hugging the Rio Grande River.
