PROVO, Utah – A group of hikers had to be rescued off Bridal Veil Falls over the weekend after one fell about 30ft.
The incident happened shortly before 9 p.m. Sunday.
“Getting to the base of the falls here is a relatively easy hike,” said Sgt. Spencer Cannon of the Utah County Sheriff’s Office.
But he said that’s what caused problems for a group of four young adults – who weren’t properly equipped to hike in the area.
Cannon said that while they were away, a 19-year-old man from Idaho fell.
“The fall where he fell and rolled about 30 feet was more of a free fall and then he fell about a four foot vertical drop,” he said. “At that time, friends, after seeing him review — they didn’t know how far it was; they couldn’t see it.
2/ You can see the degree of danger on these photos of #BridalVeilFalls. @UCSO_SAR had 13 team members on the mountain while @UtahDPS the helicopter crew and @NorthForkFireUT provided relief and medical assistance. And how many times have I said you MUST be properly equipped! pic.twitter.com/9d8VuMYalw
—Spencer Cannon (@SGTCannonPIO) August 23, 2021
With the help of a Utah Department of Public Safety helicopter and just over a dozen search and rescue team members, the 19-year-old was picked up from the mountain and transported in an ambulance to the hospital.
Rescuers said he suffered relatively minor ankle injuries and was lucky to be alive.
Cannon urged hikers and climbers to be better prepared.
“If you don’t have experience in this area, bring someone with you who does,” he said.
He suggested people are given hiking boots – warning that one of the hikers rescued on Sunday evening was wearing sandals.
Cannon also reminded people to pack extra layers as fall approaches.
“The night can be fifty degrees colder than during the day, and you don’t want to spend the night when it’s 20 degrees outside,” he said.
Cannon said five other people have died in the area alone in the past five years, including a 40-year-old Roosevelt man who fell and died climbing with his fiancee’s 9-year-old son.
