Grand Canyon National Park ranked the deadliest

Grand Canyon National Park has garnered a reputation as the deadliest national park in the United States, according to records obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request. Despite its smaller size and lower visitor count compared to many other national parks, Grand Canyon leads in the number of missing person reports, deaths, and even suicides from 2018 through the early months of this year. Additional data revealed that other national parks also experienced fatalities. Lake Mead, spanning Arizona and Nevada, saw at least five deaths, while Yosemite, Death Valley, and Golden Gate National Parks reported at least four deaths each. Ken Phillips, a retired former chief of emergency services and search and rescue agent with the National Park Service, stated that the recorded death toll at the Grand Canyon likely underestimates the actual number. He explained that on average, the canyon experiences around 12 fatalities per year, resulting from various factors such as heat stroke, lightning strikes, drownings in the river, air crashes, suicides, and accidental falls. Phillips attributed the higher risk factors at the Grand Canyon to its peak visitation during the summer months in the desert, altitude sickness due to elevation, and the physical challenge of hiking uphill after descending into the canyon. Finding individuals in need within the expansive park can be likened to searching for a needle in a haystack, according to Phillips. In another case, the body of a suicide victim was found near the First Trail View overlook after the individual had been reported missing earlier. The records also documented a person reported missing in August 2021, whose body was later discovered close to the geology museum. Investigations determined that these incidents involved suicides.