Hiker Dies After Falling From Grand Canyon Ledge

ARIZONA — A 44-year-old man is dead after he fell from a ledge while hiking in Grand Canyon National Park on Friday, authorities confirmed over the weekend.

According to park officials, the man was hiking off-trail around 3:30 p.m. Friday when he accidentally fell from a ledge. The fall happened west of the Bright Angel Point Trail near the North Rim of the park, officials said.

Rangers located the man's body approximately 200 feet below the rim. Officials did not release the man's name.

The National Park Service and the Coconino County Medical Examiner's Office are leading the investigation.

Friday's death follows a series of others at Grand Canyon National Park this year.

In June, a Tennessee woman died when she became caught in the Colorado River current while trying to cool off. She was identified by the parks service as Sheetal Patel, 47, of Chattanooga, Tennessee.

Two months earlier, a Salt Lake City woman who worked with the state's water quality division died when she fell about 20 feet during a group river trip at Grand Canyon National Park. And in March, a 68-year-old woman on a non-commercial boat trip died when she fell into the Colorado River at the top of the Hance Rapid.

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