Tourist Falls to His Death Taking National Park Photos

Image: PHOTO: Haystack Creek Falls, Glacier National Park, Montana. (photo via Flickr/GlacierNPS)
Image: PHOTO: Haystack Creek Falls, Glacier National Park, Montana. (photo via Flickr/GlacierNPS)
Patrick Clarke
by Patrick Clarke
Last updated: 4:37 PM ET, Wed July 26, 2017

A man snapping scenic photos fell to his death in Montana's Glacier National Park over the weekend, according to The Missoulian.

Park officials said 26-year-old Robert Durbin was taking pictures when he fell into a creek, was swept into a culvert passing under a road and plunged off a 100-foot cliff.

Durbin was standing alongside Haystack Creek near Going-to-the-Sun Road when he slipped.

Durbin's brother, William, told The Missoulian that his brother wanted to stop and take a picture of a waterfall.

"He lost his footing and fell," Durbin said. "He wasn't wearing the proper shoes for that. I was told he had flip flops on. It was something silly, but I've done it. My son has done it. It was just an unfortunate accident."

Going-to-the-Sun Road was closed to traffic for about an hour Saturday as rangers and rescuers worked to locate and recover Durbin's body.

According to officials at Glacier National Park, falls are the leading cause of death among visitors.

"The message is that creeks and waterfalls in the park are certainly really exciting and attention-grabbing," Glacier National Park spokesperson Lauren Alley told The Missoulian. "There are a lot of them. We always ask people to not walk, play or attempt to take photos on the slippery rocks. It's so easy to fall."

"If people do fall in the fast-moving water, there are a lot of rocks and logs that can cause injuries. People need to be extremely careful around rocks that are wet."

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Durbin's family has set up a GoFundMe campaign to help offset funeral costs and other expenses.


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