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A Saugus woman died while hiking in Arizona. Her friends want answers.
"If you start as a group, you should end as a group."
A local woman who went hiking outside of Phoenix, Arizona was found dead off of a trail at Camelback Mountain, officials said.
The woman, later identified as Angela Tramonte, 31, of Saugus, reportedly hiked up half the mountain with another hiker, but she turned back due to the high heat. The Phoenix Fire Department reported Tramonte was with a “group,” while other outlets reported that she was hiking with a man. ABC15 reported that Tramonte’s “boyfriend” told authorities she’d become overheated and decided to go back down.
Tramonte’s companion told authorities that when he returned to the vehicle, he was unable to find her. Firefighters told ABC15 her belongings were found inside the car.
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Phoenix Fire Department rescue teams searched the mountain after Tramonte went missing Friday, and found her body around 5 p.m. that day near a home off the Echo Canyon Trail. Authorities told ABC15 the woman may have tried to alert someone nearby before collapsing.
“If you start as a group, you should end as a group,” Phoenix Fire Department Captain Rob McDade told 12News.
A Phoenix police spokesperson told AZ Central that foul play is not suspected and the cause of death would be determined by the Medical Examiner’s Office.
Tramonte’s friends are not convinced, however, and told CBS Boston that Tramonte was visiting Phoenix for the first time to see a man she’d met on Instagram. Her friends said the man was a police officer.
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“If anybody knew Angela, she wouldn’t go anywhere without a gallon of water in her hand, and I heard she was found without any water,” her friend Melissa Buttaro told CBS Boston.
Tramonte’s friend Stacey Gerardi wants justice and answers
“As a cop, as a first responder, you’re supposed to help people. If somebody’s walking up a mountain and you’re seeing her in distress and she’s not feeling well and she’s exhausted – why wouldn’t you walk her back down,” Gerardi asked. “Why would you continue to walk back up? It doesn’t make sense.”
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