Father and daughter found dead among hikers as temperatures in Utah’s parks reach triple digits

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A total of three hikers died over the weekend in state and national parks in Utah, presumably due to the heat. Among them was a father and his daughter who got lost on a strenuous hike in Canyonlands National Park in triple-digit temperatures.

The 23-year-old daughter and her 52-year-old father sent a text message to emergency dispatch reporting they were lost and out of water while hiking the 8-mile Syncline Loop, described by the National Park Service as the most challenging trail in the park’s Island in the Sky district in southeastern Utah.

The pair set out on Friday, tackling steep switchbacks and climbing through scree fields with sparse trail markings as air temperatures exceeded 38 degrees Celsius.

Park rangers and a Bureau of Land Management helicopter crew began searching for the missing hikers early Friday evening but found them dead. The San Juan County Sheriff’s Office identified them Monday as Albino Herrera Espinoza and his daughter Beatriz Herrera of Green Bay, Wisconsin.

Because of the rugged terrain, safety officials flew the bodies out of the park by helicopter Saturday morning and to the state medical examiner’s office, according to the sheriff’s office. The local sheriff and the National Park Service are investigating whether their deaths were caused by heat.

Later Saturday, first responders in southwest Utah responded to a 911 call that two hikers were “suffering from a heat-related incident” in Snow Canyon State Park, known for its lava tubes, sand dunes and a canyon formed from red and white Navajo sandstone.

A multi-agency search team found and treated two hikers suffering from heat exhaustion. While they were treating the two, a passing hiker alerted them to an unconscious person nearby. Rescuers found the 30-year-old woman dead, public safety officials said.

Her death is being investigated by the Santa Clara-Ivins Public Safety Department. Her identity has not been released publicly.

Even during the hottest months of the year, tourists continue to flock to national parks in Utah and other southwestern states, despite officials warning that hiking in extreme heat poses serious health risks. Earlier this month, a Texas man died while hiking in Grand Canyon National Park, where temperatures in the summer can reach over 120 degrees Fahrenheit (49 degrees Celsius) on exposed sections of the trail.