80-year-old man dies after falling from boat during Grand Canyon rapids trip

An 80-year-old man died in Grand Canyon National Park over the weekend after his boat capsized in the Colorado River, becoming the 13th person to die in the park this year.

The man was on a commercial whitewater trip Sunday and fell into the water at Fossil Rapid, according to the National Park Service.

According to officials, it fell around 3:40 p.m. and an emergency was reported to the National Park Service via satellite phone.

The group said CPR was already underway as rangers responded to the emergency.

However, the efforts of the group and the park rangers, who arrived by helicopter, failed to resuscitate him.

The National Park Service and the Coconino County Medical Examiner are investigating the incident. Officials have not identified the victim.

In August alone, several people have died in Grand Canyon National Park. On Sunday, a 33-year-old woman, Chenoa Nickerson, was found swept away by a flash flood, the same day the 80-year-old man died in the boating accident.

Three people died in the park on the last day of July and the first week of August, including a 20-year-old man who fell from a scenic overlook on July 31, a BASE jumper who fell to his death on Aug. 1 and a 20-year-old hiker who was found dead 150 feet below the edge after entering on Aug. 3.

A park official told The Associated Press this week that 10 to 15 people die in Grand Canyon National Park each year, and that last year only 11 died.