Authorities believe the
UK student got too close to the edge of the cliff and fell, Powell County Search and Rescue spokeswoman
Lt. Lisa Johnson told
It was the second fall crews responded to at the gorge in 24 hours, Johnson said. A man fell Monday night from a nearby cliff and was taken to the University of
Kentucky Hospital in
Lexington.
Gabriella ‘Gabby’ Smith University of Kentucky student hiking along Red River Gorge falls 150ft to her death. Body found. Image via Red STAR Wilderness EMS
Selfie stick
Johnson urged hikers to not get too close to cliff edges because they can give way when the ground is wet and can crumble when the ground is dry.
University of Kentucky student falls to her death off 150-foot cliff at Red River Gorge
May 6, 2021 / 6:22 AM / CBS/AP
A 24-year-old University of Kentucky student who went hiking at Red River Gorge has been found dead at the bottom of a 150-foot cliff, authorities said. CBS affiliate WKYT reports that authorities identified the woman as Gabriella Smith, a second-year medical student from Alexandria, Ky.
Powell County Search and Rescue said in a statement that the organization was notified Tuesday that the woman had gone hiking Monday and did not return. Crews were able to ping the woman s phone and watch to get GPS coordinates and began searching for her in the Auxier Ridge area, the statement said.
Campbell County family mourns loss of daughter in hiking accident: She had so much to offer Updated: 11:16 PM EDT May 5, 2021
Gabriella Smith, 24, died after falling at Red River Gorge Share Updated: 11:16 PM EDT May 5, 2021
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Show Transcript ROCK IN A FREAK ACCIDENT. RANDY: IT’S TRAGIC. THAT’S REALLY THE ONLY WORDS I CAN COME UP WITH. REPORTER: A FATHER’S HEART ACHES AT THE LOSS OF HIS 24-YEAR-OLD DAUGHTER. RANDY SMITH SAYS GABRIELLA SMITH, DIED IN AN ACCIDENT AT RED RIVER GORGE, FALLING 150 FEET OFF A CLIFF MONDA HER MOTHER KERENSA SMITH, SAYS THEY’VE ALL HIKED FOR YEARS. KERENSA: SHE DID EVERYTHING THAT SHE SHOULD HAVE DONE TO BE HIKING ALONE. SHE LET EVERYBODY KNOW WHERE SHE WAS GOING, WHICH TRAIL SHE WAS GOING ON, WHAT TIME SHE WAS GOING INTO THE TRAIL REPORTER: HER MOTHER SAYS SHE WAS BREAKING IN NEW BOOTS BEFORE A HIKING TRIP OUT WEST. THE FAMILY NEVER GOT A TEXT FROM GABRIELLA THAT SHE MADE IT HOME. THEY SAY HER PHONE ST
Rescue officials urge hikers to exercise caution as weather warms
and last updated 2021-05-04 23:15:37-04
POWELL COUNTY, Ky. (LEX 18) â After a year of doing puzzles inside and trying new recipes, many people are yearning for a more normal spring and summer: a life outside their homes.
The warm weather has drawn many people out to the Red River Gorge, but it s also prompted a warning from emergency officials. All it takes is just a misstep, said Jeremy Urekew with RedStar Wilderness EMS. The rock formations are very slick and slippery.
Urekew is currently in Florida working at a COVID-19 vaccination site, but his colleagues back in Powell County have been busy responding to reports of hikers in danger. Over the last week, the Powell County Search and Rescue team has responded to at least four calls in which hikers were hurt or lost.