NORTH RIM, Ariz. — A hiker is dead after becoming unresponsive at the Grand Canyon Saturday, the National Park Service said.
On Sept. 9 around 1:55 p.m., the Grand Canyon Regional Communications Center received an emergency call of a hiker in distress on the North Kaibab Trail, nearly a mile south of the Cottonwood Campground.
According to officials, the hiker, identified as 55-year-old Ranjith Varma of Manassas, Virginia, became unresponsive after the call was made and bystanders begun CPR. When rescue crews arrived, they initiated advance life support efforts, but attempts to resuscitate Varma were unsuccessful.
Officials said Varma was hiking from the South to North Rim in a single day.
An investigation into the incident is being conducted by the NPS in coordination with the Coconino County Medical Examiner.
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