A 65-year-old man died last week after slipping and falling over the edge of the Grand Canyon West in Arizona, police said.
Mohave County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue announced on Facebook that at approximately 2 p.m. on Nov. 6, it received a call to assist the Hualapai Nation in a technical recovery of a man who fell to his death at Guano Point.
The man, who has not been publicly named by authorities, was found about “130 feet down on a scree pile,” the statement said.
“Our condolences are with his family,” the sheriff’s office said. “Please respect their privacy during this time.”
A rope technician makes his way up from the rescue scene.
Mohave County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue/ Facebook
Rope technicians set up a lowering and raising system to retrieve the body of the victim. The Hualapai Tribal Police Department, the Hualapai Nation Fire Department and Grand Canyon West Security also assisted in the recovery.
No further information is available about the incident.
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Grand Canyon West is located on the Hualapai Reservation. It is owned and operated by the Hualapai Tribe independently of Grand Canyon National Park, which is located on the North and South rims of the canyon.
Guano Point, where the man fell, is renowned for its 360-degree views of the canyon and its expansive, railing-free hiking trail. It is also the site of a decommissioned aerial tramway system that once spanned 7,500 feet, built in 1957.
Rope technicians use a lowering/raising system to recover the body.
Mohave County Sheriff’s Office/ Facebook
The Grand Canyon, characterized by its immense size and layered rock formations, attracts nearly five million visitors annually, according to official statistics.
In 2024, there were 21 fatalities inside the national park and 1,058 emergency medical service incidents. Five hundred and fifty-eight hikers at the Grand Canyon required emergency assistance.
In July, a 67-year-old man died inside Grand Canyon National Park while hiking in extreme heat.
The man was reportedly found unresponsive on the South Kaibab Trail, below Cedar Ridge. He was trying to reach the Colorado River for an overnight stay at Phantom Ranch, a lodge at the bottom of the canyon.
Park officials stated that bystanders immediately initiated CPR on the unidentified hiker, while National Park Service medical personnel and volunteers responded on foot.
“All attempts to resuscitate the individual were unsuccessful,” the National Park Service confirmed in a press release.
At the height of summer, temperatures on exposed parts of the trail can exceed 49 C in the shade, according to a statement from park officials. At Phantom Ridge, the mean high temperature is 27.2 C.
A few months earlier, in May, Dennis Smith, 74, of Olympia, Wash., died while hiking the North Kaibab Trail.
He was pronounced dead at the scene, despite efforts by bystanders and National Park Service staff to resuscitate him, the Grand Canyon Office of Communications confirmed in a press release.
Smith, who was considered an “avid and experienced hiker,” was attempting a Rim-to-Rim hike from the South Rim to the North Rim, the press release added.
— With files from Global News’ Katie Scott
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