Banff National Park — Royal Canadian Mounted Police have confirmed a 25-year-old American man has died after leaping into Johnston Canyon in Banff National Park. CBC reports the incident happened on Friday and is considered an accidental death:
“A gentleman crossed some barriers and entered the pools, and he’s believed to have entered on a couple of occasions. On the third occasion, he jumped from a height and briefly surfaced, but appeared to be in some difficulty and returned under the surface.” -Staff Sgt. Mike Buxton-Carr
Parks Canada temporarily closed the Johnston Canyon Trail leading to the iconic and natural attraction in an attempt to retrieve the body. During the closure they conducted an extensive search of the area, including the upper and lower pools at the Lower Falls but they were unable to find the man. The search crew was unable to send divers into the water due to the dangerous terrain and used underwater cameras to canvas the area.
“Due to ongoing hazardous water conditions, all available search efforts have been exhausted at this time, and recovery operations have been suspended.” -Parks Canada
The man’s identity has not been release but it is confirmed was visiting Alberta with friends from Pennsylvania.
