70-year-old woman falls to her death in Grand Canyon National Park

[Eugene]

Source: ABC News

70-year-old woman falls to her death in Grand Canyon National Park

By MORGAN WINSOR Apr 24, 2019, 11:04 AM ET

A tourist on Tuesday fell to her death in Grand Canyon National Park, becoming the second person this year to do so, authorities said.

Park rangers received a call Tuesday afternoon about someone needing help at the South Rim, but by the time help could arrive the person had fallen, according to a press release from the National Park Service.

A rescue team of about 15 people used the park's helicopter to locate and recover the body of a 70-year-old woman some 200 feet below the rim. The woman's name won't be released until her relatives have been notified, according to the National Park Service.

It's unclear how the woman fell.

"Park staff encourages all visitors to have a safe visit by staying on designated trails and walkways, always keeping a safe distance from the edge of the rim and staying behind railings and fences at overlooks," the National Park Service said in a statement Tuesday.

-snip-

Read more: https://abcnews.go.com/US/70-year-woman-falls-death-grand-canyon-national/story?id=62593040

[hlthe2b]

1. Distracted tourists is epidemic there, it would seem.

[underpants]

2. Sad. Not hard to do.

Standing there you really get your mortality right in your face. Not that I contemplated it but I asked several friends who’d been there and we all agreed to beautiful awe inspiring and the end of your life is right in front of you.

[Maru Kitteh]

3. The rate of suicide among the "young old" and others of advancing age is

higher than most people think and a pretty neglected phenomena. Whatever the circumstance, this will likely be a real shock to her family, and they have my greatest sympathies. What a majestic place to die though.

[Chin music]

4. Not to mention the selfies business that everyone has to do these days.

Hard to pay the attention you really need to when youre trying to smile your best, stand right, get a good shot in the background, AND take the picture. Not saying this is what happened, bc, people have been falling for a long time there. Just doesnt help any.

[Bucky]

11. and they're doing it ON YOUR LAWN!!

Selfies aren't new. Here's Colin Powell in 1954




Here's Robert Cornelius 115 years before that.

[Chin music]

12. OMG! Nice pictures!

[kimbutgar]

5. I was there a couple of years ago, if you are not paying attention and being aware of your

Surroundings you could fall easily. Or if you are a dummy who wants a great selfie you can also take a tumble into the canyon.

[Awsi Dooger]

17. I was too lackadaisical near Shoshone Point in spring 2012

I was adjusting my digital camera while walking about 10-15 yards from the tombstone rock, on the far left side of the approach area. Only then did I realize the seemingly flat surface in front of me suddenly sloped away sharply to the left. From there it was 3 feet to an inevitable slide off the edge. I wasn't in danger where I was walking but if I had been just one foot further left it would have been easy to catch my left foot on the tilted area and lose my balance while falling to the left with nothing to save me.

It really shook me up once I realized what I had narrowly avoided. On my departure from that point I went back and spent a lot of time standing alongside the specific spot. Everything was normal until one small area was like a mini gully. I remember thinking there had to be similar problematic areas all over the park, and especially when you deviate from the prime tourist areas. Consequently it never surprises me when I hear that someone has fallen.

[panader0]

6. I've been there a couple of times.

You have to go beyond the railings and fencing to fall from the rim.
I hiked to the bottom and up the Bright Angel creek on the other side of the river.
The walk down (and up) is more dangerous than the rim.

[cwydro]

7. I did that years ago.

That’s a brutal hike lol, but worth it!

[panader0]

8. You would think that walking down would not be tough on your body.

But after setting up my camp on the Bright Angel, I could barely walk.
The muscles in my thighs ached from walking downhill, from trying to keep
from falling forward. There was sun at the bottom, but snow at the top
when I finally reached the lodge and had a few beers in front of the big
fireplace.

[cwydro]

9. I remember thinking the hike down was the most difficult!

I was there in July too. I remember feeling parched!

[aikoaiko]

15. That's the thing about the GC. Everybody has to see it, but to interact with it is difficult.

The best parts of the GC are not very accessible and I recommend Utah Canyonlands, Bryce, and Zion for people who want to touch the beauty.

[aikoaiko]

14. There are a lot of places on the south rim where there are trails, a small rock wall, and a cliff

with no railings.

I was visiting last summer and took a selfie with my son on the south rim. As I was focusing I noticed someone's 3-year-old lean back on the short rock wall while the parents were about 10 feet away looking through binoculars. If she hopped up a bit and fell back, she was gone.

[IMG][/IMG]

[Stuart G]

10. People who hike in national parks, often do dumb things...

...I was at Yosemite National Park walking up a difficult trail. Near the top of the trail, there were steps, near a water falls, they were wet, and very slippery. I got to the top and there was a look out view over the falls and the area below. Behind me there was a woman, walking up the trail, up the wet steps in what appeared to be sneakers or some kind of slippers. Shoes that would easily slip on water. Well, she slipped, and fell on the trail. She did not fall off, (thank goodness) but she fell down, and she hurt her leg. She couldn't get up and partially blocked the entire trail going up the waterfalls. I was able to walk around her, to go down, but needed to be very careful. Eventually they needed to get a helicopter to pick her up and take her away...Here is a picture of Vernal Waterfalls where this happened, (on the steps on the side of the waterfalls to the right) right below the top...you cannot see them, but they are there........... :
......https://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&aq=&oq=Vernal+Wate&ie=UTF-8&rlz=1T4GGNI_enUS494US495&q=vernal+waterfall&gs_l=hp..0.0l4j0i22i30.0.0.0.1791241...........0.5B-076pHhDk

...She thought she could walk up a difficult trail in slippers or sneakers. I know how that happened, because her thinking is very simple. ..." Hay, this place is four hours from San Francisco, everyone is welcome here. I can walk up this trail in these shoes.."no problem" No one checks your shoes out, and last..."How difficult a trail can it be, if everyone is welcome?"...It is just a "trail" and "steps" four hours from San Francisco"
....This is the stupid thinking people have at national parks.... Some parts are very dangerous. The Grand Canyon..? very dangerous.
....Another story...I was at Yellowstone years ago. As I walked by a river on a trail, there was a buffalo lying down and putting dirt on his face. I walked by leaving him/her alone. I could not have been more than 5 feet from this huge animal. You don't touch these animals, but I could see where someone might. Some people are not very smart, like the lady walking up the wet trail in sneakers or slippers. They think they know everything when they really know nothing..

[llmart]

13. Someone must have seen what happened.

I'm really curious to see if they find out what happened.

[leftyladyfrommo]

16. She isn't the second one. She is about the 4th

One in just the last two or three weeks.

[Jimbo S]

18. I was there five weeks ago

My first visit. Didn't know what to expect. I was somewhat astonished to find the South Rim Trail right on the rim with at times no barriers. Yeah, no checking your phone while walking.