Hiker Dies In Badlands National Park After Running Out Of Water
One hiker is dead and his friend hospitalized after they ran out of water on an unmarked trail in South Dakota’s Badlands National Park.
Maxwell Right, a 22-year-old from Missouri, died on Wednesday from “suspected dehydration and exposure,” the Pennington County Sheriff’s office wrote in a news release on Facebook. His hiking companion, whose name has not been released, is a 21-year-old who was flown to a hospital.
Though the sheriff’s office initially said the two men headed out on the unmarked trail because of a “social media challenge,” Right’s sister, Lucille Right, told them that they had actually been following a trail on a hiking app.
Badlands National Park, where temperatures have been around 100 degrees Fahrenheit this week. (Photo: ©Jamie A. MacDonald via Getty Images)
Maxwell Right and his friend had taken the trip to celebrate his graduation from Missouri S&T, Lucille Right told The Associated Press.
Temperatures at Badlands National Park have been around 100 degrees Fahrenheit nearly every day this week, and the area has little shade, according to local news station Fox 2 Now.
In the wake of Maxwell Right’s death, officials have emphasized the importance of bringing a lot of water and staying on marked trails.
“We’ve said many times, you have to have enough water, water, water,” sheriff’s office spokesperson Helene Duhamel told local news station KSDK. “But I don’t think people understand and they underestimate the heat, especially in the Badlands.”
This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated.
