At least 16 people have died at the Grand Canyon in Arizona this year, including the recently recovered body of a 71-year-old man at the storied national park this week.
The causes of death range from boating accidents to drowning after flash floods.
In August alone, five canyon visitors were reported dead, including one man who attempted a risky and illegal BASE jump on the canyon’s South Rim. Two other visitors died in apparent drownings. A fourth person was found dead after entering the park for a solo backpacking trip. A fifth body was recovered 150 feet below a canyon ridge after a multi-day search by park officials.
Nearly 5 million people visit the mile-deep, yawning chasm every year to experience hiking, boating, camping and more. Of those, the 10-year average number of fatalities at the canyon is 17, according to data from the park. The most common cause of death is cardiac arrest.
An outlier year?
Meghan Smith, the preventive search and rescue coordinator at the park, cautions that the canyon’s story shouldn’t be boiled down to all doom and gloom. She called the recent spate of deaths in August an "outlier."
“We expect clusters of events any time there is monsoonal weather or any time we have extreme heat incidences. The thing that we don't expect is the cluster that you saw about a month ago where we had three back-to-back, over-the-edge falls involving our technical rescue team,” she said.
A number of deaths this year have followed stretches of extreme weather. In July, for example, a 57-year-old woman was found dead at the park during a punishing heat wave. Park rangers had previously posted signs warning visitors that temperatures can reach as high as 120 degrees during peak hours of the day.
While climate change has been a major factor in extreme weather events around the globe — including the sort of heat waves and flash flooding that have plagued the park as much as elsewhere in the United States — Smith is wary of drawing a direct link between the string of deaths at the park and a changing environment.
“This has been an austere environment and going back, you know, many, many decades and understanding the collective history about this place,” Smith said.
The role of climate change
“One of the things that we are seeing that's different that I would say is tied to climate change is the water levels on the Colorado River and what water levels are let out of the dam … that has changed drastically over the years,” she said.
“So we're seeing much lower water levels in the lake, and thus out of the lake, and thus on the river. And we are having more serious accidents, incidents on the river in places we hadn't seen them in years past.”
That includes the August death of a 33-year-old Arizona woman who was found dead in the Colorado River following a flash flood. Two additional bodies were recovered along the river over the last week.
Staff retention at the park has been declining over the years, Smith said, making periods of intensity like this much more difficult for herself and her small team.
How visitors can stay safe
Smith said there are many things visitors can do to help keep themselves safe.
“It's really important to use planning and preparedness. A lot of times when we go on vacation, the things we're looking at are what are we going to do for fun and what are we going to eat? But when we talk about recreational endeavors into the canyon, we want people self-assessing,” Smith said.
In all, more than 250 people are rescued from the Grand Canyon each year, according to data from the park. Given the potential for danger, all visitors, she said, should have a “Plan B” to prepare for the unexpected.
“We want them to plan extra food, plan extra water, bring their home medications with them in case they get stuck out for an unplanned evening overnight, bringing plenty of light for them — light resources, aside from the flashlight on your cell phone,” she said. “Bringing layers, particularly this time of year. It's really hot at the bottom of the canyon, it's really cold on the rim. Checking in with yourself along the way and if maybe you've bitten off more than you can chew.”
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