A Texas teen plunged off a 50-foot waterfall to his death while on a trip with his friends celebrating their high school graduation at Washington state’s Olympic National Park.
Grant Herridge, who attended Vanguard College Preparatory in Waco, Texas, had traveled to the Olympic National Park in the northwest corner of Washington with friends after graduating high school a week earlier.
The teen was walking on the rocks at the top of one of the waterfalls at the Sol Duc Falls when he slipped and fell into the pool of water below on June 8, the National Park Service said.
Witnesses said Herridge resurfaced at the bottom of the waterfall, only to submerge underwater again.
Herridge’s father, Brad Herridge – a pastor at the Ocker Brethern Church – confirmed his son’s death in a heartbreaking Facebook post.
“Grant was doing what he loved, hiking through Olympic National Park, and had a tragic accident,” the grieving father wrote. “He was always so full of life and we are going to honor him by living life to the fullest in the future. Please continue to pray for us as we struggle to live life without him.”
Park rangers and search and rescue crews rushed to the falls in the expansive wilderness in the park, but didn’t discover his body until the next day.
Herridge, a rising freshman at Baylor University in Waco, was found completely submerged and pinned under the water between the two falls.
Herridge was remembered as an adventurous outdoorsman, living by the motto inscribed on a ring he wore, “while we wait for life, life passes,” Brad Herridge told KWTX.
Officials have faced dangerous conditions recovering Herridge’s body because of the high river flow in the approximately eight-foot canyon.
Rangers and rescue teams attempted to recover Herridge on two separate attempts but faced increased water speeds near the recovery site because of the warmer temperatures and rapid snowmelt.
“The park’s priority is to safely complete this recovery as soon as conditions allow. Rangers will continue to monitor the target area, natural hazards, and changing conditions. Recovery operations will resume when it is safe to do so,” officials said in an update Tuesday.
Herridge’s dream of attending Baylor was inspired by his parents, who are alumni of the private Christian university.
“He had wanted to go to Baylor his whole life” Brad Herridge told the outlet. “His mom and I graduated from Baylor, his mom works for Baylor… so Baylor’s like in his heart.”
Baylor honored Herridge before hosting a service at its visitors center on Wednesday.
“Our hearts are shattered for the Herridge family in the tragic passing of their son Grant, who was an incoming freshman and shining light in Baylor’s Class of 2029. It is difficult to express the depth of our sorrow for Mary, Brad and Lucy, but our Baylor Family has come together to surround them in our deepest prayers and support as they navigate this unimaginable loss,” the university said in a statement obtained by KWTX.
The “Grant Herridge Memorial Scholarship at Baylor University” was created after the tragic accident.
“Grant’s life on Earth ended much too soon, but through your generosity, his life will continue to impact generations,” the scholarship’s poster stated.
The post Texas teen plunges 50 feet to his death over waterfall in Olympic National Park while on graduation trip appeared first on New York Post.
