Weekend Accidents On Lake Powell Leave

One Dead And Another In Critical Condition

PAGE, Ariz. – Two serious, unrelated accidents in Glen Canyon National
Recreation Area this weekend claimed the life of a 20-year-old woman and
left a 20-year old man in critical condition.

On Aug. 25 at approximately 5 p.m., a group of seven friends were
returning to Bullfrog Marina from the Hansen Creek area aboard a 23-foot
powerboat.  The driver was apparently distracted and not paying attention,
causing the boat to slam head-on into a rock wall at 30-40 mph.

Eight National Park Service rangers responded to the scene of the accident,
with all of the boat’s seven occupants experiencing major injuries.  Park
rangers found Danielle Sorensen, of Delta, Utah, not breathing when they
arrived. 

They began CPR on her while they treated the six other victims.
A flight nurse from Classic Lifeguard Helicopters later pronounced Danielle
dead.

All of the survivors were flown from the scene of the accident to regional
medical centers in Colorado, Utah, and New Mexico.  The other six victims,
all between the ages of 20-25, are expected to recover.

The Kane County Sheriff’s Office and the National Park Service are
investigating the accident.

On Aug. 24, Colton Dixon, of Emmett, Idaho, was wakeboarding at approximately 6:30 p.m. in the remote San Juan arm of Lake Powell.  He had just completed a flip when the front part of the wakeboard went underwater, causing him to fall forward and strike his face on the water.

Colton soon began experiencing seizures.  His friends got him to a nearby
houseboat, which happened to have two nurses on board.