LAS VEGAS (AP) - An 11-year-old boy died in the intense heat of Death Valley National Park after he and his mother became stranded in one of the world's most inhospitable areas and survived for several days on bottled water, Pop-Tarts and cheese sandwiches, authorities said Friday.
Alicia Sanchez, 28, was found severely dehydrated and remained hospitalized in Las Vegas a day after being found with her dog, her dead son and a Jeep Cherokee buried up to its axles in sand.
She told rescuers in California's San Bernardino County that her son Carlos died Wednesday, days after she fixed a flat tire and continued into Death Valley, relying on directions from a GPS device in the vehicle.
An autopsy on the boy is scheduled, but foul play was not suspected, police said.
Officials said Sanchez and her son set out last Saturday with a case of 24, 16-ounce bottles of water and food on what was to be an overnight camping trip. No one reported them missing until Wednesday.
Death Valley National Park Chief Ranger Brent Pennington said an air and ground search was launched at dawn Thursday, and the woman and her son's body were found about 11 a.m.
Sanchez told authorities she couldn't get a cell phone signal, and even hiked to the top of a peak to try.
"A GPS does not replace a map, a compass, checking in at the visitor center and letting people know where you're going," Pennington said.