GRAND COUNTY, Colo. — "Conditions remain too dangerous" for crews to recover the body of a hiker who fell several hundred feet from Arikaree Peak in late August, officials said Thursday.
On Aug. 28, the Grand County Sheriff’s Office and Grand County Search and Rescue learned that a hiker had fallen between 300 and 400 feet from Arikaree Peak, one of several peaks about 13,000 feet in the Indian Peaks Wilderness Area, the sheriff's office said.
Initially, multiple agencies responded. This included the search and rescue team, sheriff's office, Boulder County Emergency Services, Colorado Hoist Rescue Team, Rocky Mountain Rescue Group, Colorado Search and Rescue, Colorado Air National Guard and the Alpine Rescue Team.
However, the combination of poor and dangerous weather prevented the teams from reaching the hiker.
"A physician aboard the helicopter during the initial attempt had determined that the hiker had not survived the fall," the sheriff's office said.
On Sept. 6, several of the agencies again tried to recover the body. But the steep and rugged terrain again made conditions treacherous.
“Our teams made every possible effort to safely reach the site of the fall, but conditions remain too dangerous for us to proceed,” said Greg Foley, Grand County Search and Rescue field director. “The safety of our personnel must come first."
The agencies made the decision to halt recovery efforts, adding that the team members would have had to face extreme risks.
Denver7 reached out to confirm that this meant the crews would not try to recover the person's body in the future.
"That is correct due to the safety issues with recovery," the sheriff's office communication director responded.
The sheriff's office and Grand County Coroner’s Office have been in contact with the victim's family.
The person has not been identified.
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