Date of Event: 7/30/2008
Canyon involved: Pine Creek
Region: Zion National Park, Utah
Country: USA
Submitted by: Dave Nally
Source: “Deaths & Rescues in Zion National Park” by Dave Nally, with additional information from Kaitlyn’s story published on the “Canyon Tales” website.
Injury: Abrasion or Laceration, Fracture, Psychological
Cause: Rappel on retrieval side of blocked single rope
Description of Event: On Thursday, July 30, 2008, paramedic rangers were called out to rescue a canyoneer in Pine Creek Canyon, after she fell 100 feet while rappelling the last drop.
Kaitlyn Bohlin, age 23, of Northfield, Illinois, suffered multiple injuries and was taken by helicopter to the University Medical Center in Las Vegas. Bohlin was a back-country volunteer in Zion, and was canyoneering with a friend on her day off―following a route she had completed in the past. She fell around 2:45 p.m., as she went to weight the rope and anchor, on the final 100-foot free-hanging rappel. After she crashed to the ground, the group ahead of her ran back to her aid. Miraculously, she awoke after being unconscious, but could not move, as it appeared she had multiple injuries to her pelvis, spine, and lungs. Her canyoneering partner called the Tunnel ranger for help on Bohlin’s park radio. Paramedic rangers responded quickly, and they rappelled from the Tunnel to where Bohlin was being cared for by the other canyoneering group. The rangers carried Bohlin to an area where an Air Force Blackhawk helicopter, from Nellis Air Force Base in Las Vegas, lifted her and transported her to the medical center in Nevada.
Kaitlyn fully recovered a few months later, and considered the pain and recovery time a small price to pay for falling one hundred feet. She was not wearing a helmet. As she later wrote in an article online: “I Fell 106 Feet. And Lived: “No brain damage. No permanent injuries. One spinal fusion. One giant mystery. What exactly happened with my equipment that day? No one is certain, but the official investigation speculates that I clipped into the pull-cord side of the rope rather than the anchored side. It seems like a painfully obvious mistake, one that couldn’t have possibly happened amidst my double-checking and reassuring explanations before stepping off the edge. It doesn’t make sense, and I don’t pretend to understand. In the end, I’m just thankful. Mistakes happen. Accidents happen. And so do miracles.” Also from this story: “I had been through Pine Creek Canyon half–a–dozen times, but it was my best friend AnnaMalia’s first time canyoneering. We agreed that I would descend each rappel first and belay her from below. I would carry the rope and AnnaMalia would carry the food, first–aid kit, and my park radio.”
Analysis: Rappelling on the retrieval side of a blocked single rope is a potentially deadly mistake. A good way to reduce the risk: securely anchor the retrieval side of the rope, ideally with the retrieval rope packed in a rope bag that is also secured to the anchor.
Kaitlyn’s partner, AnnaMalia, had never been canyoneering before this trip. When taking beginners out, best practice is to have at least two competent canyoneers in the group who are capable of ensuring good safety practices and performing rescue if needed. One aspect of the trip that went well: AnnaMalia carrying Kaitlyn’s park radio. This undoubtedly helped minimize the delay of the rescue response. That way, a competent person descends first on every rappel to provide a fireman’s belay for others, while another stays above to ensure safety at the rappel station.
The plan to have Kaitlyn go first on all rappels was inherently flawed from a best practice standpoint. This meant that a beginner was left alone at the top of each rappel without supervision or support. At the final drop, the rappel anchor is airy and exposed, inducing anxiety even in seasoned canyoneers. From Kaitlyn’s account on Canyon Tales, AnnaMalia was clearly stressed at that anchor. In that moment, it may be that Kaitlyn’s attempts to explain the rappel system and boost morale served as a distraction from her own personal safety, and thus was a contributing cause of the accident. Had there been another competent canyoneer in the group, who would have rappelled last, AnnaMalia might have been less anxious, freeing Kaitlyn to better focus on her rappel procedure. One aspect of the trip that went well: AnnaMalia carrying Kaitlyn’s park radio. This undoubtedly helped minimize the delay of the rescue response.