75-year-old man plunges 100 feet to his death in closed area of Hawaii national park

A 75-year-old man fell to his death in a closed area of a Hawaii national park, rangers said.

Family members reported the Hilo man missing shortly after midnight on Monday, Jan. 3, Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park rangers said.

“After searching for the man in the darkness, National Park Service rangers and Hawaiʻi County firefighters located the man’s body,” park officials said in a news release.

Rangers found the man’s body about 100 feet below the crater rim near a viewing area of the Kīlauea Volcano. Officials think he fell from the closed area late at night on Sunday, Jan. 2.

His body was recovered about 8 a.m. on Jan. 3, rangers said.

The man’s death is under investigation, and park rangers had no other details available as of Tuesday, Jan. 4.

Thousands of tourists have flocked to the Kīlauea Volcano to watch it erupt in recent months. Many tourists want to see the lava glow at night.

“Viewing lava at the summit of Kīlauea is awe-inspiring,” Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park Superintendent Rhonda Loh said in a September news release. “We want to keep the park open for all to experience this new phase of volcanic activity, but we can only do so if visitors follow guidelines that keep everyone safe.”

Lava activity has only been in the volcano’s crater, and there aren’t signs that it will go anywhere else, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

This story was originally published January 4, 2022 at 9:32 AM with the headline "75-year-old man plunges 100 feet to his death in closed area of Hawaii national park."