The search for an elderly couple who vanished on a cross-country road trip came to a bittersweet end as authorities found the wife alive and husband dead.
Ronnie and Beverly Barker, ages 72 and 69, were reported missing by family after they failed to return home to Indianapolis after their trip through the western US in an RV.
Family last heard from the couple on 27 March, when their RV was seen in surveillance footage on Highway 95 near Luning, Nevada.
More than a week later, the pair were found on a mountain about three and a half hours northwest of Las Vegas on Tuesday.
Ronnie was pronounced dead at the scene and Beverly was taken to a hospital and treated for dehydration, family members told 13 News.
Search crews had first located the RV in stuck in the mud. Hours later, they found the couple and the car they were using to tow the RV in the mountains west of Silver Peak.
Beverly was taken to a hospital in Reno and released Wednesday, three days before her 70th birthday.
The Barkers had set out on their road trip last month and were set to return to Indianapolis this week, family said.
A search was launched after relatives lost contact with the pair on 27 March.
“They have vanished, literally, into thin air," the couple’s daughter Jennifer Whaley said during the search.
“It’s all flat. It’s all desert. So where did they go? Where did they go? They’re out in the middle of the desert. You can see for miles and a 32-foot RV, towing a car, literally vanishes into thin air. Where did they go?”
Ms Whaley said the lack of communication was extremely unusual for her parents, adding: “When they fall off the face of the earth, there’s a problem."
The Barkers’ medical history exacerbated concerns, as both suffered from diabetes and Ronnie was a cancer survivor.
An official search wasn’t launched until four days after the family raised alarm because authorities in Nevada initially said they couldn’t issue a Silver Alert because the Barkers were not residents of the state.
In the end it took volunteers and law enforcement hundreds of hours to locate the couple about two miles from where their RV got stuck.
Police said Beverly appeared to be in good spirits when she was found despite the death of her husband.
Ronnie’s cause of death has not been confirmed but dehydration is believed to have been a factor.
The family finally got some answers as to what happened after the daughters flew out to Nevada to meet Beverly in the hospital.
She explained the ordeal in a video call with other relatives back home.
"What happened was a 25-minute phone call that’s the most incredible phone call I’ve ever had,” the couple’s nephew, Travis Peters, told 13 News.
"As a lot of people suspected, it was bad GPS directions."
Beverly said the RV got stuck on 27 March, and then the couple got lost when they went for help in the car.
"They knew they were in trouble, but the story that she told to me, like I said, it was almost religious,” Mr Peters said. “As time progressed, my uncle, who was a very devout Christian, he would see figures from the Bible and took so much comfort in that.”
With few supplies in the car, Beverly said she made repeated trips to a snowbank to gather drinking water. But Ronnie’s condition quickly weakened as temperatures plummeted at night.
"As the days and the nights passed, my Uncle Ronnie told her he was dying. And she said, ‘I know,’” Mr Peters said.
“They knew it was dehydration. All along, he would ask her to read the Bible and he finally passed away Monday, just two days ago."
As rescuers struggled to follow the car’s tire tracks on Tuesday, Beverly caught their attention by honking the horn in Morse code for “SOS” - as Ronnie taught her to do.
Mr Peters said the Barkers were both very intelligent and well-versed with technology.
Beverly previously worked for defence contractors while Ronnie was an Air Force veteran who dreamed of spending his later years on the road.
“That’s the one thing Ronnie looked forward to when he retired. He wanted to be able to travel. He liked to travel," their daughter, Lynn Bledsoe, told 13 News.
Mr Peters added: "It’s really sad that Uncle Ronnie is gone, but he really led a life well-lived.
“Kind of makes it a little better that he didn’t have things that aren’t fulfilled, like so many people do.”
The family issued a statement thanking everyone who helped locate the couple on Wednesday evening.
“The outpouring of support was nothing short of incredible by the members of the local community. Our hearts are full because of the efforts that were put forth to help us bring Ron and Bev back home again to Indiana,” it read.
“While the loss of Ronnie Barker is tragic, we are grateful that Beverly was found alive and can now begin her recovery from this tragic ordeal. We are grateful that Beverly will be able to fill in the blanks and give us the answers that we all so desperately seek.
“Ronnie Barker loved his family and loved his country. He served our nation proud over his 26-year career in the United States Air Force. Ronnie was a believer in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He was proud of his faith and was always willing to give to others. He was funny, witty, and was the spark of energy that everyone gravitated toward. People just loved and wanted to be around Ron Barker.”
The family also noted the “roadblocks” in gaining help from the authorities and called for Nevada residents to demand changes.
“It’s our hope that Ronnie Barker’s legacy will be changing policy that will allow for a more expeditious approach to locating missing persons of all ages for both non-residents and residents of the state of Nevada,” they said.
“Fly high MSgt Ronnie E. Barker, you served us all well.”
