Wyatt Kauffman, North Dakota 14 year old teen boy miraculously survives falling nearly 100 feet into the Grand Canyon after getting out of the way so a tourist could take photos.
What were the odds? A 14-year-old North Dakota teen boy has miraculously survived falling nearly 100ft into the Grand Canyon from the North Rim as he moved out of the way so that tourists could take pictures.
Authorities said it took emergency crews two hours to rescue Wyatt Kauffman after he slipped on a cliff on the Bright Angel Point trail while on a family trip to the canyon on Tuesday.
The teenager was airlifted to a Las Vegas hospital for treatment to nine broken vertebrae, a ruptured spleen, a collapsed lung, concussion and a broken hand and dislocated finger.
‘It wasn’t that good of a grip and I started to fall back.’
‘I was up on the ledge and was moving out of the way so other people could take a picture,’ Wyatt told KPNX. ‘I squatted down and was holding on to a rock. I only had one hand on it.
‘It wasn’t that good of a grip. It was kind of pushing me back. I lost my grip and started to fall back,’ the teen added.
Rescue crews had to abseil down the cliff and get the injured boy out of the canyon in a basket.
‘After the fall, I don’t remember anything after that,’ said Wyatt, who lives in Casselton, North Dakota.
Adding, ‘I just remember somewhat waking up and being in the back of an ambulance and a helicopter and getting on a plane and getting here to the hospital.’
Brian Kauffman was in North Dakota when he received ‘one of the most heart-wrenching phone calls’ he has ever had about his son’s fall and rescue.
A National Park Service search and rescue team helped bring the teenager safely to the rim.
‘We’re extremely grateful for the work of everyone. Two hours is an eternity in a situation like that,’ Mr Kauffman said.
He said Wyatt and his mother were on a trip to visit national parks when the Grand Canyon fall occurred.
Deadly mishaps along Grand Canyon
Mr Kauffman said his son was discharged from the hospital on Saturday and was being driven home. Wyatt and his mother were expected to reach Casselton on Tuesday.
‘We’re just lucky we’re bringing our kid home in a car in the front seat instead of in a box,’ Mr Kauffman told KPNX.
He later posted pictures of his son in a wheelchair on Facebook with the caption: ‘HE’S OUT!!! Still in a fair amount of pain, but, HE’S OUT! Now they start the long ride home. Carol is hoping to do about 4 hours today and get a hotel.’
He also revealed that one of the nurses had made him a t-shirt which said ‘I survived’ in a heartfelt gift.
‘Good vibes and prayers for a safe, boring and uneventful 1600 mile drive for Wyatt would be MUCH appreciated,’ Mr Kauffman added.
In August 2022, a 44-year-old man died after falling over the edge of the North Rim. He was off-trail when he plunged approximately 200 feet below the rim.
Meanwhile, just two months ago a man fell to his death at Grand Canyon Skywalk, falling 4,000 feet down to his death.
The Grand Canyon National Park Search and Rescue team responds to more than 300 calls per year, ranging from falls over the edge to heat illnesses.
