Hiker dies on trip to Great Smoky Mountains. Park rangers tried to save him.
A 26-year-old hiker died despite rangers’ attempts to save him in Great Smoky Mountains National Park on Friday, park officials said Saturday.
Responding to a report of a man in cardiac distress, rangers said they found Zachary Brown of Portland, Tenn., beside Laurel Creek Road, near Crib Gap.
Brown was standing beside the road with his family when he experienced a”cardiac event” just before 2 p.m., according to a park news release.
Rangers performed CPR on Brown until emergency responders with American Medical Response arrived.
The responders drove Brown to Blount Memorial Hospital, in the foothills of the park near Knoxville, where he later died.
Rangers released no other information Saturday morning.
Crib Gap and the Laurel Creek Loop Trail, near Townsend, Tenn., are near Cade’s Cove, just over the North Carolina state line.
This story was originally published September 26, 2020 at 9:24 AM.