Kilauea Volcano.Photo: Maxar Technologies/Getty
An elderly man has died after falling into Hawaii’s Kilauea Volcano, according to authorities.
“A 75-year-old Hilo man died after falling from a closed area within Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park late Sunday night,” the National Park Service said in astatementshared on Monday. (Hilo is a town located on the northeastern side of Hawaii.)
“After searching for the man in the darkness, National Park Service rangers and Hawaiʻi County firefighters located the man’s body about 100 feet below the crater rim, west of the Uēkahuna viewing area at the summit of Kīlauea volcano,” the NPS said in the statement.
With the assistance of a helicopter, park rangers recovered his body around 8 a.m. that day.
No additional details about the man’s death are currently available as the park service continues its investigation.
Kilauea was labeled themost dangerous volcanoin the country, according to a 2018 report from the US Geological Survey.
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Kilauea Volcano.Maxar Technologies/Getty
Since then, people have also been traveling to the park at night in order to catch a glimpse of the glowing lava lake, according toCBS News.
Back in 2019, authorities were able to save a visitor who fell about 70 ft. into the volcano, theStar Advertiserreported at the time.
Park officials told the outlet that the man, identified as being in his 30s, had climbed over a railing to get a closer look before accidentally falling from a cliff.
“Visitors should never cross safety barriers, especially around dangerous and destabilized cliff edges,” Chief Ranger John Broward said in the news release at the time, per the outlet. “Crossing safety barriers and entering closed areas can result in serious injuries and death.”
source: people.com
