A software CEO has a tragic accident in a national park

A 40-year-old man who served as the CEO of a software company in Utah and had a significant following on social media fell more than 200 meters to his death on a canoeing trip in Zion National Park, according to new information released by park authorities.

Justin Bingham, who served as the head of Lindon City, Utah-based property management software technology company Opiniion, was with a group of three other park visitors while hiking through the park’s Heaps Canyon on Oct. 5 .

Related: Same mistake nearly costs national park visitors their lives

The initial report indicated that one person in the group, later identified as Bingham, took a wrong step and fell into the canyon at approximately 6:00 p.m. that day. He was pronounced dead before he could be airlifted to a hospital, while the other three members of the group were pulled from the canyon without injury.

“Search and Rescue attended the scene and provided emergency medical care”

“After receiving the report of the fall, the Zion National Park Search and Rescue Technical Team and the Washington County Sheriff’s Office arrived on scene and provided emergency medical care,” the National Park Service (NPS) said in a statement . “The man was extracted by a Utah Department of Public Safety helicopter to a heliport near Watchman Campground, where he received additional assistance from Hurricane Valley Fire and Rescue and Intermountain Life Flight.”

More about travel:

• The National Park visitor becomes the first arrested for this in 2024
• Another national park just made it more difficult to visit
• The Airbnb/hotel debate is getting very tiresome

Park officials added that “the rescue team helped the third rappel down the canyon, reaching the ground safely at approximately 2:00 p.m.”

Bingham’s death sent shockwaves through his community and the company’s fellow management released a statement describing him as an “eternal optimist” who died “doing what he loved”.

Related: Get the best cruise tips, deals and ship news from our expert cruiser

Zion National Park is the site of many deaths each year.

Getty Images/Joseph Sohm

“Justin’s spirit of adventure and dedication to living life to the fullest will be greatly missed”

“His commitment to building meaningful relationships has had a lasting impact on all who had the privilege of knowing him,” the Opinion team wrote in a statement. “Justin’s spirit of adventure and dedication to living life to the fullest will be sorely missed.”

Canyoning, an adventure sport that involves abseiling and jumping between canyons, is a high-adrenaline activity that many love for the experience, but it has also caused a number of deaths in the country’s national parks over the years.

In December 2022, a 52-year-old visitor to Death Valley National Park in California suffered a fatal accident while abseiling in Mosaic Canyon, while in August 2024 three Utah residents drowned in a natural tornado into which they accidentally fell while descending a canyon in the Sierra Nevada mountains.

Due to a canyon-like geography that prompts many visitors to try activities such as canyoneering and base jumping, as well as rock trails full of trip hazards, Zion National Park has a higher accident rate than many other US national parks At one point, recording 41 deaths in a single year, Zion once landed in a rundown of the nation’s most dangerous, along with other nearby parks such as the Grand Canyon and Death Valley, which also recorded a high number of recent casualties, although most are due to extreme heat.

“Our thoughts and deepest sympathies are with the family and friends during this unimaginably difficult time,” Zion National Park Superintendent Jeff Bradybaugh said in a statement about Bingham’s death.

Related: Veteran fund manager sees world of pain coming for stocks