A 20-year-old American woman, Brook Cheuvront, who disappeared while hiking on South Africa’s Table Mountain, was found dead on Sunday, authorities confirmed.
Cheuvront, a University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill student, had been in Cape Town for an internship with a local NGO. She embarked on a solo hike on Saturday but was reported missing after her tracking app stopped updating, and attempts to reach her by phone failed.
Her body was discovered in the Devil’s Peak area near Table Mountain during a search that involved rangers, wilderness rescue teams, and a helicopter. The search initially began on Saturday but was called off for the night before resuming the next morning.
South African National Parks (SANParks) confirmed that the circumstances surrounding her death are still under investigation. An autopsy has been ordered by police to determine the cause of death.
Cheuvront’s father expressed his grief in a Facebook post, writing, “God help me and us,” as the family copes with the tragic loss.
While local authorities have denied issues of crime within Table Mountain National Park, they have advised visitors against hiking alone.
