Rangers Urge Caution After Fatal Cliff Fall
SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS) Park Service officials are reminding hikers to put safety first, after a vacationing Pennsylvania teenager fell to his death from a Marin County coastal cliff Monday.
Golden Gate National Recreation Area spokeswoman Alexandra Picavet said 17-year-old Andrew Leonard Hicks Jr. was on a hike with his entire family when he and a sibling ran ahead to get a better view of Muir Beach. She said they veered off the main path to what's known as a social trail, basically a well-trodden detour.
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"It's not an official trail that's built or maintained by the National Park Service," Picavet said. "He decided to sit down and look out over the view and was bracing himself on some rocks when he fell."
Contrary to earlier reports, Hicks was not talking or texting on his cellphone when he fell 500 feet to his death.
This is the second time the area has seen a fatal fall in the last ten days. On July 10th, a 45-year-old San Pablo man died when he fell 40 feet from a Cliff above Rodeo Beach.
