Park Rangers Warn of Extreme Heat Amid Hiker’s Death in Grand Canyon

A 69-year-old hiker died at Grand Canyon National Park on June 29 after collapsing on a trail, said the National Park Service (NPS), which has issued repeated warnings due to heat. Texas resident Scott Sims was hiking on the South Kaibab Trail en route to an overnight stay at Phantom Ranch, a popular stopover for hikers, when he collapsed, the NPS said in a statement July 1. The area is the only lodging for hikers below the canyon rim and can only be reached by foot or mule, or by rafting the Colorado River. “The Grand Canyon Regional Communications Center received a report of a semi-conscious hiker on the River Trail, approximately halfway between the Silver Bridge and Black Bridge near Phantom Ranch,” the NPS said....