41-year-old hiker dies at the bottom of the Grand Canyon after spending the night

Lina Portman3 weeks ago

0 2 minutes read

With about a dozen deaths each year, the Grand Canyon is a land of extremes where many visitors feel overwhelmed. The cause of the latest death is unclear.

A 41-year-old hiker who spent the night at the bottom of the Grand Canyon was found dead not far from where he spent the night.

The Grand Canyon Regional Communications Center received a report of an unresponsive man on the Bright Angel Trail shortly before 7 a.m. Sunday, the National Park Service said. Passersby and park staff were unable to resuscitate him.

The man was hiking out of the canyon after spending the night at Bright Angel Campground near the Phantom Ranch lodge, the park service reported.

The National Park Service and the Coconino County Medical Examiner are investigating the death.

Temperatures at the bottom of the Grand Canyon in June can easily reach triple digits. Although it's unclear exactly how hot it was Sunday, recent visitors reported temperatures in the 80s and 90s.

Body found in Grand Canyon last month

The 41-year-old man is the second death reported at the Grand Canyon this year. Park rangers found the body of a missing 58-year-old in the Colorado River on May 10, according to the park service.

Thomas Robison of Santa Fe, New Mexico, probably floated down the Colorado River with his 11-year-old corgi dog on a wooden raft. His car was found at the Lees Ferry site on April 21 and a missing person search began a few days later.

The park service said an investigation is underway.

About 12 people die each year at the Grand Canyon

About 12 people die each year at the Grand Canyon, according to an unofficial count by Michael P. Ghiglieri and Thomas M. Myers, authors of “Over the Edge: Death in the Grand Canyon.”

Although Ghiglieri and Myers found that helicopter and plane crashes are the leading cause of death in the canyon, deaths from environmental conditions such as heat have increased in recent decades.

At least 10 deaths were reported in the national park last year, including two on the Bright Angel Trail.

James Handschy, a 65-year-old man from Oracle, Arizona, died in November after using a personal locator beacon to call rescuers.

In May, a 36-year-old woman from Westfield, Indiana, died while trying to reach and return from the Colorado River in one day.

Contributors: Amanda Lee Myers, Amaris Encinas and Aidan Wohl

With about a dozen deaths each year, the Grand Canyon is a land of extremes where many visitors feel overwhelmed. The cause of the latest death is unclear.

Body found in Grand Canyon last month

About 12 people die each year at the Grand Canyon

Lina Portman

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