3 injured, 1 hospitalized, after ‘substantial’ rockfall at Zion National Park

Three people were injured, one of them hospitalized, after a “substantial” piece of rock broke from a mountain at Zion National Park and plunged 3,000 feet to the ground.

Tourists and nature-lovers were showered with smaller rocks, branches, dust and sand amid the incident at Utah Park Saturday afternoon. Park officials in a press release Monday said the huge rock split from Cable Rock Mountain and landed near East Rim Trail, downing several trees amid its descent.

Three people were injured in the chaos, one of who was transported to the hospital by ambulance.

The rockfall prompted officials to shut down the Weeping Rock Shuttle service just before 6 p.m. Some people were left stranded at the end of Weeping Rock Trail but were eventually able to find their way out of the park.

The trail and shuttle will remain closed until further notice, officials said.

“The Echo Canyon and Observation Point Canyon canyoneering routes are also closed, as is the East Trim Trail from Observation Point to Weeping Rock,” according to the press release.

Earlier this month a 14-year-old Utah girl was killed in a rockfall during a visit to Glacier National Park in Montana. The rocks struck the top of a vehicle near the East Tunnel of the Going-to-the-Sun Road, killing the teen and injuring her two parents as well as two other children in the car.

Zion National Park, located in the Southwestern part of Utah, just outside of St. George, saw nearly 4.3 million recreational visits in 2018. It is the fourth most visited national park behind the Great Smoky Mountains, the Grand Canyon and Rocky Mountain, according to its website.