Woman, 19, found dead at the base of Angels Landing trail at Utah’s Zion National Park after friends reported she’d gone missing while they were hiking
- Savanna McTague, 19, was reported missing Wednesday evening while hiking
- She and two friends were said to have been on Zion National Park’s Angels Landing trail when she went missing
- Her body was recovered Thursday morning by a search and rescue team
- Authorities said the sustained injuries consistent with a high-altitude fall
- McTague was an employee of a travel company, who was working at Zion Lodge
The body of a young woman found at the bottom of Zion National Park has been identified as being that of a 19-year-old hiker from Maine.
Authorities from Utah’s Zion National Park said that search and rescue workers had retrieved the body of a young woman from the base of Angels Landing Thursday morning, after she had been reported missing while hiking with two friends Wednesday at about 5.30pm.
The friends told authorities they suspected she had fallen.
Officials confirmed Friday that the recovered body belonged to the missing woman and identified her as Savannah McTague, 19, of Maine.
Authorities said Friday that the body recovered from the base of a rock tower at Zion National Park belonged to missing hiker Savannah McTague, 19 (pictured), of Maine
McTague (pictured) had been reported missing by her two friends Wednesday at about 5.30pm. They had been hiking together on Angels Landing
McTague was said to have been an employee of the travel company Xanterra and was working at the park’s Zion Lodge, according to St. George News.
McTague was said to have gone missing and was suspected to have fallen from Angels Landing. At its tallest, the rock formation is about 5,800 feet high.
Authorities said that injuries McTague had sustained were consistent with a high-elevation fall.
At its tallest, the rock formation is about 1,488-feet high, although it’s unclear how far up McTague was when she fell. It’s also unclear how experienced a hiker she was, but she had posted many pictures of herself while hiking on social media.
Angels landing is said to include steep climbs and drop-offs. Towards the top of the rock, hikers are said to use chains to move along a narrow path that falls away on both sides.
McTague (pictured) worked at Zion Lodge and had graduated high school as a junior in 2017
It’s unclear how expert a hiker McTague (pictured) was, but she frequently posted pictures on social media of herself at high altitudes during hiking trips
McTague is seen here in a Facebook snap, posing while hiking the Appalachian Trail
Authorities said that they are continuing to investigate what caused McTague (pictured) to fall from Angels Landing, which is still open to visitors
At its tallest, Angels Landing (pictured) is 1,488-feet tall. Hikers are known to use chains to help them climb up portions of the rock tower as there are steep dropoffs on either side
Zion National Park was under flash-flood warning on Wednesday due to heavy rains in the area, according to the Salt Lake Tribune.
National park officials and the sheriff’s office – who were called in to assist in the search for McTague – will continue to investigate the cause of her fall.
KUTV reported Thursday that there were no plans to close the trail, but that if authorities found a hazard on the trail that had contributed to McTague’s death, they would consider closing Angels Landing.
McTague’s would be one of a handful of deaths at Angels Landing in recent years.
In April 2019, a man was found at the bottom of the trail after his roommate reported him missing. He was found at the base of the north side of the route, KUTV reported.
Prior to his fall, a 13-year-old girl died in 2018 after she fell from the trail and a 45-year-old man is also believed to have died from a fall in 2017, according to USA Today.