SPRINGDALE – The name of an overdue hiker found dead in the Zion Canyon Narrows over the weekend was released Monday by National Park officials.
Douglas Yoshi Vo, 34, of Westminster, California, was identified as the man found by park rangers in the wake of flash flooding caused by heavy rains Saturday, according to a press release from Zion National Park.
Vo and a companion were hiking into the Narrows from the Riverside Walk Trail Saturday morning when the Virgin River was running at 46 cubic feet per second. However, the river began to rise rapidly, eventually peaking at 4,040 cfs.
Park officials do not allow hikers in the Narrows when the river is running over 150 cfs.
Both hikers became stranded on high ground on opposite sides of the river. Due to the noise from the river neither could communicate, and they waited in their respective spots from around 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., according to the news release.
With water still too high to allow the two to hike out, Vo’s companion entered the river and was able to safely swim out. He contacted rangers around 6:30 p.m. and told them vo was still in the Narrows. He told the rangers Vo did not appear injured or under distress the last time he saw him.
As the river was still too high to safely mount a rescue that evening, Rangers returned Sunday once the waters receded and did not find Vo at his last known location. Vo’s body was found by the search team at approximately 2 p.m. along the bank of the Virgin River near the Riverside Walk.
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