Math teacher found dead in Utah national park following flash flooding

31 August 2023 , 18:14

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An Arizona math teacher, Jeanne Roblez Howell, was found dead in a Utah national park on Saturday (Image: Facebook)

A beloved math teacher was found dead at a national park in Utah on Saturday in a tragedy that left a small Arizona community grieving.

Jeanne Roblez Howell, 64, set out for a midday hike in Bryce Canyon National Park last Friday, August 25. She left at around 2pm, but when she didn't check in by 7pm, her loved ones started to get worried.

They called the National Park Service, who looped in the Garfield County Sheriff's Office and the Utah Department of Public Safety, and a search began. Hours later, they found Howell's body in Campbell Canyon at about 1.30am Saturday morning, and the Sedona, Arizona, teacher was pronounced dead by a Garfield County medical examiner.

Howell's body was found in Campbell Canyon at about 1.30am Saturday morning (Getty Images)

She was located just about a mile east of the Fairyland Loop she had been hiking. The National Park Service said in a statement that a thunderstorm had "delivered heavy rain" to the northern end of the park that same afternoon, resulting in flash flooding in dry washes along the eight-mile (about 13km) trail. That may have been what did the 64-year-old in.

The National Park Service's website describes the Fairyland Loop as "a quiet eight-mile hike that combines hiking along the plateau rim near Boat Mesa with a hike in the canyon with long views of the Bryce Amphitheater surrounded by unique hoodoos." It requires hiking to the starting point, as well, though the website is unclear as to how long it takes to get there from an accessible point.

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The website also states that it takes about four or five hours to complete the hike — meaning Howell should have finished about the time she was reported missing.

The National Park Service said in a statement that a thunderstorm had "delivered heavy rain" to the northern end of the park that same afternoon (Andy Stenning / Daily Mirror)

Allana Olbrich, the acting Bryce Canyon superintendent, said in the release: "This is a tragic event, and our deepest sympathy goes out to the victim’s friends and family. I also want to express the park’s appreciation for the support we’ve received from the Garfield County Sheriff’s Office and the Utah Department of Public Safety."

Howell had been a math teacher at Verde Valley High School, where she was beloved, Benjamin Lee, the head of the school, told the Verde Valley Independent. He said the school and the community were mourning Howell's loss right alongside her family.

The school's website said Howell "knew she wanted to be a math teacher since fifth grade" — a dream she made a reality after obtaining two bachelor's degrees in mathematics and psychology from the University of Utah. She later moved to Johannesburg, South Africa, where she taught IB-level math for four years before eventually making her way back to the states and into the Verde Valley School District.

"Jeanne initiated a number of programs at her previous school to promote community, such as inter-house competitions, student and faculty talent shows, spirit week, parties and dances," her bio states.

It adds that she had been "equally committed to fitness" and had taken both students and faculty to the top of Mount Kilimanjaro before. In that way, she was an experienced hiker, so marching along the Bryce Canyon trail would have been nothing new for the 64-year-old.

Jeremiah Hassel