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Missing Texas Teen Found Dead Below Highway Outside Of Ouray

Highway 550, Red Mountain Pass, Ouray
Laura Palmisano

A missing 18-year-old from Texas was found dead in Colorado on Thursday. 

Rescue workers recovered the body of Edgar Alfredo Vargas from the canyon below U.S. 550 on Red Mountain Pass outside of Ouray, according to a release.

The Ouray County Coroner's Office identified Vargas.

The El Paso teen was reported missing last week. Officials say a search in the area for him started last Friday. 

Colorado State Patrol says it appears Vargas' truck lost control near mile marker 89 causing it to go off the roadway, down an embankment and off a ridge before landing on the canyon floor. 

CPS says Vargas died on the scene and he was the only person in the truck.

Red Mountain Pass remained closed most of the day as workers recovered the vehicle.  

KNXV-TV reports Vargas was driving from El Paso to Grand Junction to attend a friend's prom. 

In February, the body of a Danish man and his rented SUV were recovered from the canyon along the same stretch of  U.S. 550. 

Laura joined KVNF in 2014. She was the news director for two years and now works as a freelance reporter covering Colorado's Western Slope. Laura is an award-winning journalist with work recognized by the Society of Professional Journalists, Colorado Broadcasters Association, and RTDNA. In 2015, she was a fellow for the Institute for Justice & Journalism. Her fellowship project, a three-part series on the Karen refugee community in Delta, Colorado, received a regional Edward R. Murrow Award.
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