SANDY, Utah, June 6, 2017 (Gephardt Daily) — The body of a 22-year-old man who fell into the creek just below the first waterfall in Bell Canyon on Sunday night has been recovered, police said.
Siaosi Brown was located in the lower falls of Bell Canyon at 8:30 a.m. Monday by the Utah Department of Public Safety helicopter, said Unified Police Department in a tweet. Dangerously high water levels forced recovery crews to halt their operation until Tuesday.
The family of Brown also released a statement via the UPD. “The family would like to thank everyone for the assistance in locating and retrieving their brother,” the short statement said. “They see what everyone is doing for them and appreciate it all but they are grieving and want that time to grieve.”
The UPD added this recovery was one of the toughest and most technical that search and rescue crews have experienced.
UPD spokesman Lt. Brian Lohrke said Brown’s friends saw him go under the water without resurfacing at approximately 9 p.m. Sunday.
Search and rescue crews were on scene for several hours, with the Utah DPS helicopter assisting. The search was called off shortly before 11 p.m. and resumed at 7 a.m. Monday.
A GoFundMe page has been set up by family friends to benefit Brown, which as of 10:30 a.m. Tuesday had raised $6,745 of a $7,500 goal.
The page said: “You are probably aware by now that our beloved mission son and brother Siaosi Brown died in a tragic hiking accident. He was an outstanding missionary, a remarkable mission leader, and a true friend to all of us. He had a great vision of the Lord’s work and now has the opportunity to continue doing missionary work in the spirit world.
