4-Year-old Dies in Fall off South Rim of Grand Canyon

Published Date

October 9, 2007

Grand Canyon near Mather Point; 'sbisson' via Flickr.

A 4-year-old girl has been killed in a fall from the South Rim of Grand Canyon National Park.

Park officials say the unidentified girl fell about 450 feet off the rim about 11:30 this morning from a point just west of Mather Point, the most popular scenic view in the park.

The girl's father scrambled down the cliff below the rim to reach his daughter. When rescue crews arrived on scene, the father had already begun CPR; however, the girl was pronounced dead on scene shortly thereafter, the park reported.

The South Entrance Road along Mather Point was closed for a short time while a long-haul operation was conducted to remove the girl's body from the canyon. The father was then removed via a short haul operation due to an ankle injury sustained from scrambling over the edge.

National Park Service rangers are investigating the accident.

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Missteps in the Parks

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Comments

Submitted by admin on November 21, 2009 - 12:44pm.

I was all excited to make a trip out to the grand canyon, and now I don't even want to go with houw dangerous it sounds. I would take my family, but it seems like we'd have to see the rim from the car as I would lock all the doors and not let anyone out.

Submitted by admin on April 5, 2010 - 1:03pm.

C'mon people! Of course the Grand Canyon is Dangerous. This is NOT Disney Land! Its a Mile Deep hole in the Ground. But, don't let that ruin your excitement for going there. If you ever thought that the Grand Canyon or any canyon or wilderness area wasn't a potentially dangerous place, then it is good that you finally realized that. It is beautiful, but wild and it belongs to the earth and wild things. We humans may think its our land, and we sell tickets at the gate, but Its not REALLY ours to fence in and disrupt wildlife. Show some respect for Nature! You take a risk any time you enter a wilderness. If you don't know that, then you could be in for a very rude awakening. Actually the whole state of Arizona, even in populated areas, is really just a big wild desert.

Submitted by admin on July 3, 2010 - 10:13am.

huh? The parks fault because this 4 year old child fell over. There are signs posting the danger about falling. One sign clearly states if you fall it would be fatal. I was there in 1997 and there was a couple that went past the railings. One member of my family asked a guide what would happen if you fell. This child said oh you mean that I'd be rescued by helicopter. This child thought that if someone fell that they'd survive the fall and the guide informed him nope.

Submitted by admin on July 23, 2011 - 8:16pm.

a way that the parents could keep the kids from runing(we know they can just slip out of our hands whenever) is by buying one of vests they make to put kids in so they cant run away

Submitted by admin on August 16, 2011 - 11:50pm.

great blog..
thanks for sharing the information....
excellent blog information presented..
thank you...

Submitted by admin on January 9, 2012 - 6:39pm.

Accidents happen every day and this one wasn't because the
parents did something wrong by losing sight of their kid because if you saw a
parent looking for their kid at Wal-Mart or woodmans you wouldn't go on and on
about it you would just brush it aside and go on with your life. The only thing
the parents did wrong was that they brought a 4 year old to the Grand Canyon.
I'm not trying to be judging or anything but it's just that they might be able
to wait a few years so the child will be able to remember it better. That's
just what I think. I want the parents to know that I’ll be praying for them and
their daughter.

Submitted by Crystal on July 25, 2016 - 12:04am.

As a mother to 4 young ones, I know that it only takes a second for something like this to happen. My husband has been begging me to haul our family to the grand canyon since we moved to Arizona over 2 years ago and I haven't because I'm afraid of something like this happening. Today was the first time I've ever searched (and I looked up "safe/fenced areas for families with children") and this article was less than half way down the page. We've traveled to 3rd world countries with our babies (our 2nd was born in one), but after reading this I am again passing on the chance to see the Grand Canyon in person, maybe in another 5 years. With 3 boys (aged 3-12) and a daughter not yet 2 but going on 13, I think the natural wonder will have to wait.

Submitted by wild places on July 25, 2016 - 10:38am.

It is sad that some people think we need signs and fences to warn people that falling may hurt your (or worse). It is also sad that people feel the need to judge the parents without being there. They may be good parents or not so good but accidents happen to everyone. Most of us are lucky that those accidents don't result in serious injury or death. Others are not so lucky. What some people find terrifying and dangerous others find normal daily activity. It is all a matter of perspective and accidents can happen on a cliff or at home in your bathtub. I feel for the parents who have to live with this tragedy for the rest of their lives.

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