19-year-old girl dies in rappelling accident


1 photo
Save Story
Leer en español

Estimated read time: 1-2 minutes

This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.

BIRCH HOLLOW, Kane County— A 19-year-old girl died after falling 120 feet in a rappelling accident Monday.

Shelby Collette Christensen, from West Jordan, had been hiking and rappelling with a group of four others in Birch Hollow when the accident occurred. She appeared to have let go when her hand became trapped between the rope and the ledge and then fell 120 feet to the bottom, Kane County Police said.

Three of the group members had already finished the rappel and were waiting for her at the bottom at the time of the accident, police said.

A Kane County Deputy and Utah State Park Ranger responded to the area and talked to those who were with her before hiking to the location of the accident and verifying that she had died from her injuries, according to police.

Kane County Search and Rescue helped with the recovery, and a helicopter was used to lift her body from the canyon.

This is the third accident connected to rappelling in Birch Hollow this summer, police said. The other two accidents were at another location in Birch Hollow, which offers several rappelling cliffs and miles of hiking. Police said both of the other accidents also resulted in multiple injuries and required the use of a helicopter to rescue those who were hurt.

Photos

Related stories

Most recent Utah stories

Related topics

Utah
Natalie Crofts

    STAY IN THE KNOW

    Get informative articles and interesting stories delivered to your inbox weekly. Subscribe to the KSL.com Trending 5.
    By subscribing, you acknowledge and agree to KSL.com's Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

    KSL Weather Forecast