Boy rescued in New Mexico desert after parents die whilst hiking

A quick thinking rescue ranger looked through the dead mother's camera for clues

White Sands National Monument, New Mexico (Ryann Ford)

A New Mexico rescue ranger has described how he saved a young boy lost in the desert after discovering photos of him on his dead mother’s camera.

Benny House told the New York Daily News that he had discovered the body of a French woman in White Sands National Monument park in the desert. Temperatures had soared above 100 degrees and it is believed she may have succumbed to the heat.

Whilst tending to the scene, House decided to look through the woman’s camera to see if he could find clues as to what had happened. He saw photos of a man and a young boy which looked like they had been taken on the same day.

House then knew to deploy further search personnel and discovered the young boy and his father half an hour later. It was too late to save the father, but the boy was rescued.

House said: “We were trying to figure out what was going on. We looked at the camera. Otherwise, he could have been the victim as well.”

After being taken to hospital, the boy told authorities through an interpreter that his family were visiting from France when his mother fell ill during the hike and had turned back towards the car. Whilst he was waiting with his father, he too had succumbed to the heat.

He is now recovering in hospital with relatives who have since flown from France to New Mexico to take custody of the boy.

The White Sands National Monument is 275 miles of desert and dunes. Whilst the white sands are a tourist attraction, local authorities caution against the extreme weather conditions which can reach well over 100 degrees at the height of summer.