Backcountry hikers at Denali National Park and Preserve notified rangers on Tuesday of human remains discovered at an abandoned campsite near the Teklanika River in the park. The site was not visible from the Denali Park Road.
National Park Service rangers identified Etienne Terrell, a 22 year old male from Atlanta, GA, through limited human remains, personal effects, and communications with friends and family. Terrell had been issued a 28-day backcountry permit on July 3, 2015.
Terrell had told family members that he was planning an extended wilderness trip in Alaska after his discharge from the military, and had not been reported as a missing person during the past year.
The cause of death is undetermined but will be further investigated by the Alaska State Medical Examiner.
APTI Reporter-Producer Ellen Lockyer started her radio career in the late 1980s, after a stint at bush Alaska weekly newspapers, the Copper Valley Views and the Cordova Times. When the Exxon Valdez ran aground in Prince William Sound, Valdez Public Radio station KCHU needed a reporter, and Ellen picked up the microphone.
Since then, she has literally traveled the length of the state, from Attu to Eagle and from Barrow to Juneau, covering Alaska stories on the ground for the AK show, Alaska News Nightly, the Alaska Morning News and for Anchorage public radio station, KSKA
elockyer (at) alaskapublic (dot) org | 907.550.8446 | About Ellen
