Woman Falls to Her Death in Zion National Park

A 26-year-old woman has died after falling in a canyon at a US national park in Utah, officials said. The woman's body was recovered Sunday evening from Mystery Canyon at Zion National Park, the National Park Service said in a news release. According to visitors, the woman was canyoneering alone and fell 50 to 80 feet Saturday afternoon. Crews launched a search and rescue effort that closed various areas of the park. A helicopter was sent to rescue the woman but was unable to pull her out “due to the steep, narrow canyon walls,” the park service said. Medics reached the woman before she died a short time later.

The woman had injuries consistent with a high-elevation fall, park officials said. Her name was not immediately released. Canyoneering is a practice or sport of following a body of water through a canyon by walking, swimming, rafting, climbing, rappelling, or other similar means, the AP reports. The search was launched Saturday after other visitors reported a possibly injured woman, reports the San Jose Mercury News. The National Park Service and the Washington County Sheriff’s Office are investigating the death.

(More Zion National Park stories.)