Tragic Incident in Zion National Park: Rappeller Loses Life in Utah Canyon

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A tragic incident unfolded over the weekend at Zion National Park, Utah, where a 58-year-old man lost his life in a rappelling mishap in Pine Creek Canyon.

Reports from the Washington County Sheriff’s Office indicate that National Park Service (NPS) law enforcement was alerted to the situation via a 911 text message at approximately 12:10 p.m. on Sunday. The message reported a canyoneering accident involving a visitor at the final rappel point.

While NPS first responders were en route, bystanders at the scene attempted to save the man by performing CPR. The challenging terrain required NPS personnel to hike in, and they managed to reach the location at about 1:30 p.m.

Sadly, despite their efforts, the man was declared deceased at the scene by the sheriff’s office at 1:42 p.m.

Due to the remote location, the man was transported by helicopter to the Washington County Medical Examiner.

The U.S. Department of the Interior confirmed the companion who was with the canyoneer was safely rescued from the canyon wall. The incident remains under investigation.

Jess Kavangh, a tour guide with Zion Adventure, said this route is particularly difficult to climb or rappel down.

“Once you do rappel number one, there’s no going back,” she said. “You have to go forward.”

She also said an accident like this has an emotional impact.

“It hurts. You just can easily see it happening to your friends or your family, because we all descend canyons out here,” she said. “It’s not like, ‘Oh, this only happens to other people.’ It happens to people in our community. And so it is a really hard day when we hear things like this happen.”