Hiker Killed By 300-Foot Fall in Grand Canyon National Park

A 24-year-old Arizona woman died as the result of a roughly 300-foot fall while hiking in Grand Canyon National Park, officials said Monday.

A park release said 24-year-old Ioana Elise Hociota, of Tempe, was hiking in Owl Eyes Canyon with a friend when she fell Sunday.

Owl Eyes Canyon is located on the south side of the Colorado River, across from the Tapeats Creek and Deer Creek areas, roughly approximately 30 miles northwest of Grand Canyon Village on the South Rim.

After park officials were alerted to the fall Sunday, the park’s helicopter was dispatched to the area and crews spotted the body below a cliff in the Supai rock layer. Rangers then responded to the scene via helicopter where they began their investigations and prepared the body for transport, the park release said.

According to Ms. Hociota’s husband, "while she and her hiking partner were not using an established trail, they had hiked in the area several times before, had acquired a backcountry permit from the NPS, and were carrying a satellite phone," the release said.

"When they missed a regular check in on Saturday evening, he was alerted that there might be a problem. On Sunday, he traveled to their designated pick-up point where he met her hiking partner, learned of the fall and immediately notified the National Park Service."