YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK, Calif. (AP) -- Human remains found in Yosemite National Park during the summer have been identified as a U.S. Navy sailor who was reported missing while visiting last spring.
The National Park Service says the remains of Alexander Joseph Sevier of Jacksonville, Florida, were identified through DNA.
A park statement says Sevier was staying in lodgings known as Housekeeping Camp and was observed going out on day hikes.
He was last seen on May 3. When he was reported missing, an extensive search began. At the end of August, remains were found near the banks of the Merced River below Vernal Fall, and DNA tests were conducted.
The Sierra Nevada received a massive winter snowfall and the spring melt set rivers and waterfalls raging. Sevier was stationed at a hospital in Portsmouth, Virginia.
