Three hikers were found dead in two separate incidents this week along the North Kaibab Trail in Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona, with all three having succumbed to extreme heat by the time emergency services arrived. Photo by U.S. National Parks Service
June 20 (UPI) — The National Parks Service announced that three people died this week in two separate heat-related incidents at Grand Canyon National Park.
Park rangers and emergency medical personnel responded to the two incidents, which occurred on June 12 and June 16, and both of which happened while hikers were on trails in the Inner Canyon, NPS said Friday in a press release.
All three of the people were deceased when officials arrived, and they were transported with aerial support to the Cococino County Medical Examiner’s office.
NPS said that trails in the Inner Canyon region, where all three were found, regularly top 109 degrees Fahrenheit during this time of year.
Earlier this month, an 18-year-old hiker experienced heat-related symptoms while hiking a different part of the park and, although park rangers and a helicopter rescue operations found him, life-saving measures were not successful.
“Hiking Grand Canyon can be a challenge for anyone, especially during the heat of summer,” NPS said in the release.
On June 12, a 72-year-old man was found on the South Kaibab Trail, and four days later, on June 16, a 67-year-old man and 68-year-old woman were found on the North Kaibab Trail.
On its website, NPS recommends that people planning to visit the park be aware that the Inner Canyon area of the park during the summer is “extremely strenuous and potentially dangerous due to intense heat, minimal shade and no water sources.”
As a result, Grand Canyon park officials recommend that hikers avoid trails in the area between 10 a.m and 4 p.m., when it is hottest there.
The agency also noted that because of a range of reasons, rescue efforts may not be immediately available.
In addition to carrying sufficient water, food and first aid supplies — and knowing their own physical limits — NPS also warns the hikers in many Inner Canyon locations be prepared to “self-rescue” and have a plan to do so.
“The recent increase in heat-related incidents comes as summer temperature in the Inner Canyon have reached dangerous levels, creating conditions that can quickly overwhelm hikers during the hottest parts of the day,” the agency said in Friday’s release.
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