Grand Canyon National Park, Ariz. — The body of a missing boater was recovered Tuesday from Grand Canyon National Park, marking the 16th death at the popular tourist destination so far this year.
The latest death involved what the park says appears to be the missing 71-year-old man who was on a private boat trip when others noticed he had disappeared without his hat and water bottle, park spokeswoman Joelle Baird said. The group reached the park’s communications center late Monday and reported him missing from Lower Nankoweap Camp, about 33 miles from where the trip started.
Park rangers used a helicopter Tuesday and located the body about 10 miles downstream. The person’s name and hometown were not immediately released.
US Geological Survey via National Park Service
The National Park Service and the Coconino County Medical Examiner’s Office are investigating the death. They are also investigating the death of a 59-year-old Colorado man who was found dead while on a rafting trip on the Colorado River over the weekend.
On average, the park reports 10-15 fatalities a year, Baird said. Among the causes of death this year are drowning, falls, natural causes and heart attacks. Some causes have not been determined yet, she said.
Last month, a 20-year-old man from North Carolina fell off the edge of the park’s South Rim. The following day, a 43-year-old Missouri man died while attempting to jump from Yavapai Point.
That same month, the body of a 20-year-old woman from New Mexico was found below Twin Overlooks, and a 33-year-old woman from the Phoenix suburb of Gilbert, Arizona, died after being swept away in the Colorado River while hiking in an adjacent canyon.
An 80-year-old man on a commercial river trip died after falling from a boat near Fossil Rapid, and a 60-year-old man from North Carolina on a solo backpacking trip was found dead near a remote trail along the Colorado River.