WASHINGTON COUNTY, Utah — On Saturday afternoon, one man broke both his ankles and another man broke one ankle after jumping off Toquerville Falls.
“They start stabilizing them, putting splints on their ankles and on their lower legs, and then we figure out how we're going to extract them out because that road is difficult,” said Sgt. Darrell Cashin, the search and rescue liaison with the Washington County Sheriff’s Office. “It is bumpy; it can create extra pain for people when you're taking them out.”
Despite constantly putting out advisories, Cashin says year after year people hurt themselves jumping off waterfalls.
“You don't know what's underneath that water,” he said. “Gunlock Falls has a really huge boulder right underneath the water you cannot see until you hit it, which has caused some significant injuries and even death in the past.”
Over in southeastern Utah, the Grand County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue responded to four cliff-jumping incidents last week in the North Fork of Mill Creek.
“This, I would argue, is definitely not a risk that people would like to take,” said Jennifer Jones, the assistant field manager for recreation with the Bureau of Land Management’s Moab field office. “You can certainly cool down and enjoy the water while not jumping from the top of the waterfall itself.”
A few years ago, the Bureau of Land Management put up multiple signs warning people not to jump.
“Grand County has a trail ambassador program, and during those busy visitation times, there's one or two trail ambassadors at the trailhead, that when they visit with folks about leave no trace, responsible recreation,” said Jones. “BLM also has park rangers that are in the area frequently.”
It puts a strain on resources to rescue these people who could’ve prevented their injuries, Cashin says.
“It takes a lot of effort to come and get you, but we're always willing to do it," he said.
