With the summer vacation season barely under way rangers are responding to fatal accidents in the National Park System.
On Tuesday a Texas man drowned at Grand Teton National Park in Jackson Lake, where he was stand-up paddleboarding when a storm swept through the area, generating strong winds that whipped up waves. He was not wearing a life jacket, according to a park release.
Rangers responded around 5 p.m. after Teton Interagency Dispatch received a 911 call reporting a person in distress in the water. CPR had been initiated when rangers arrived on scene. Rangers continued CPR for approximately one hour but resuscitation efforts were unsuccessful. The unidentified man was from El Paso.
Across the country in Maine at Acadia National Park rangers responded to a string of emergency incidents and fatalities in the past week.
“Any fatality in the park is devastating,” said Superintendent Kevin Schneider, “but having three major incidents in the park this close together is hard to fathom. I’m proud of our park rangers who responded to these terrible incidents and worked tirelessly support the victims and their families as the incidents unfolded. Our thoughts are with the family and friends of those impacted by these terrible tragedies.”
On June 23, Acadia rangers responded to reports of a 20-year-old male who fell about 20 feet at the South Wall of Champlain Mountain climbing area. When park rangers arrived on scene, Bar Harbor Fire Department ambulance was preparing to transport the patient, who had been carried to the Park Loop Road by a group of other climbers.
On June 25, park rangers and local EMS personnel responded to a report of a man who collapsed and hit his head near the summit of Cedar Swamp Mountain. When first responders arrived, the patient was not breathing and had no pulse. Life Flight of Maine transported the patient to Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor. The patient has since passed away from his injuries.
Park rangers also assisted Maine Marine Patrol officers in a fatal incident after a sailboat ran aground near Eastern Head on Isle au Haut on June 30, 2025. Maine Marine Patrol is leading the investigation of that fatality.
