GRAND CANYON, Ariz. – A 53-year-old woman died over the weekend at the Grand Canyon from what officials believe was a heat-related illness.
The Grand Canyon Regional Communications Center received a report at around 1:15 p.m. Sunday that a backpacker was experiencing heat illness on the Tonto Trail near Monument Creek, the Grand Canyon National Park said in a news release.
Michelle Meder of Hudson, Ohio, became “disoriented and later unconscious” while hiking down the Hermit Trail on Saturday during a multiday backpacking trip through the area, the park said.
Responding rangers found Meder dead on Sunday. The high temperature at Phantom Ranch, where Bright Angel Trail is located, was 115 degrees on