‘We are bewildered’: Hiker’s death at Valley of Fire stuns family

The family of one of the women found dead at Valley of Fire State Park after they went hiking there is “bewildered” by her death because she was an athlete who regularly hiked and participated in fitness activities in the desert.

Jessica Rosalie Rhodes, 34, and Diana Matienzo Rivera, 29, started their hike at about 6 or 7 a.m., said Rhodes’ sister Ruby Rhodes, 56.

“Yes, we are all curious,” said Ruby Rhodes, who lives in Wilmington, N.C. “What happened?”

The family was in shock over the deaths, she added.

“We are all bewildered because she was always in the desert doing something,” Ruby Rhodes said, describing her youngest sister, who went by her middle name, Rosalie.

Rosalie Rhodes, born in Chicago, was the baby of a large family and a “loving, caring person” who was “willing to help anybody,” which is why she worked in the health care field as a certified nursing assistant at Summerlin Hospital Medical Center, Ruby Rhodes said.

“She was the most sweetest, kindest person ever,” said Rhodes’ niece Noami Short, 30, of Las Vegas.

Short said Rhodes was like a second mother to Short’s 11-year-old son Lamar Travis, who has been struggling to cope with the loss.

She said some of her fondest and funniest memories with Rhodes include when she was trying to teach Short to drive when they were in their teens. Short ended up driving the car into a ditch near the former Texas Station in North Las Vegas, prompting a police response.

“She would say, ‘If you knew me, you would love me. That was her quote,” Short said. “And she is right. People loved and adored her.”

Rhodes also loved Beyonce, Short said. In a photo taken backstage at a concert in Las Vegas — Short wasn’t sure of the date — Rhodes and Beyonce are seen standing beside each other.

On Wednesday, a spokesperson for The Valley Health System, whose facilities include the Summerlin hospital, said in a statement that the women “were beloved and respected employees who cared deeply about their patients and co-workers.”

“Our hospital team is heartbroken, and we will miss them tremendously,” Gretchen Papez said in an emailed statement.

A GoFundMe was set up by Rhodes’ mother, Josephine Rhodes, to help cover funeral costs. As of Thursday evening it had raised just over $5,800, with a fundraising goal of $15,000.

A state parks official said Tuesday that the women were reported missing sometime after 10 a.m. by another party who told park rangers that the women might have been low on resources that would have helped them withstand the dangerous heat in the park.

Nevada State Parks Deputy Administrator Jonathan Brunjes said Tuesday the women had been hiking on the park’s 4.6-mile Prospect Trail and had run out of water as the temperature soared to 118 degrees.

Brunjes said a person needs a liter of water for every two hours of hiking. Light clothing and plenty of sunscreen are also recommended.

Brunjes said it initially appeared the deaths may have been caused by the heat, but he also said it was preliminary because an official cause of death hadn’t yet been determined by the Clark County coroner’s office.

Short said Rhodes knew how dangerous the heat could be and knew how to be prepared.

On Thursday, a coroner’s office spokesperson said the causes of death for the women were still pending.

One of the women was found a quarter-mile from the trail’s parking lot about noon while the other woman was found farther up the trail around 2 p.m., Brunjes said.

It’s possible the woman found closer to the parking lot had been trying to return to a spot where she might be able to get help, Brunjes said.

Contact Brett Clarkson at bclarkson@reviewjournal.com.