Autopsy: Arizona scout died from dehydration, overheating
An autopsy for a 16-year-old Boy Scout who collapsed on a trooping hiking trip in the southern Arizona desert has shown the morbidly obese teen died from dehydration and hyperthermia or overheating.
The Pinal County Medical Examiner’s report says Joshua Michael White’s April 27 death at Picacho Peak State Park was an accident.
The report says the boy reportedly drank two quarts (1.89 liters) climbing up Picacho Peak and another two on the way down during the six-hour hike on a day temperatures reached 96 degrees F (35.56 Celsius). The report says he weighed 289 pounds (131 kilograms), but had no other known medical issues.
His family said at the time the Goodyear, Arizona teen loved scouting and he, fellow scouts and their leaders were experienced hikers.
