17-year-old dies after he’s rescued from ‘landmark’ Texas rock formation, officials say

A teenager died after hiking a popular Texas trail in the sweltering heat, officials said.

Three people were hiking in Canyon around midday on June 20 when things took a turn for the worse, a town official told McClatchy News.

The trio called for help around 1:45 p.m. and were rescued from the trail soon after.

One of the hikers, a 17-year-old boy, died after being rescued, the official said.

“We don’t have a cause of death,” she said. “They will do an autopsy, but that normally takes about a month.”

The other two hikers were not injured.

The rescue occurred at Lighthouse Trail, a popular route that cuts through Palo Duro Canyon State Park. The trail features a column-like rock formation shaped like a lighthouse.

“It’s kind of our landmark there,” the official said.

The temperature in Canyon on June 20 reached a high of 99 degrees, according to AccuWeather.

Temperatures that high can lead to heat exhaustion, which can be life-threatening, according to the National Weather Service in Amarillo, Texas.

Hikers should be mindful of the summer heat and hike during the cooler parts of the day, the official said.

Canyon is about 300 miles east of Albuquerque, New Mexico.

This story was originally published June 23, 2023 at 10:16 AM with the headline "17-year-old dies after he’s rescued from ‘landmark’ Texas rock formation, officials say."