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Lake Mead named deadliest national park in America

Posted at 7:56 AM, Mar 08, 2017
and last updated 2017-03-09 00:27:39-05

Lake Mead National Recreation Area has been named the deadliest park in America.

Outside magazine published its list of the 10 most deadly national parks on March 1. They pulled records from January 2006 to September 2016 on where, how, and why park visitors are dying.

According to their research, there were more than 1,000 deaths, excluding suicides, over the past decade in the most deadly parks.

The number one cause of death overall is drowning. The other top two are motor vehicle crashes and slips or falls.

Lake Mead topped the list with an average of 25 deaths per year. The most dangerous feature of the park is the lake. 254 people have died in the park over the last decade. 15 people have died in the park this year. The park also has the most homicides of any national park. There have been 6 in the last 10 years.

Lake Mead is the third most visited park on the list with 7 million visitors annually. Although the park is mostly land, most people visit it for the lake.

Yosemite National Park (150 deaths) and Grand Canyon National Park (130 deaths) rounded out the top three. Here is the complete list:

1. Lake Mead National Recreation Area
2. Yosemite National Park
3. Grand Canyon National Park
4. Yellowstone National Park
5. Golden Gate National Recreation Park
6. Glen Canyon National Recreation Area
7. Denali National Park and Preserve
8. Great Smoky Mountains National Park
9. Grand Teton National Park
10. Natchez Trace Parkway

CLICK HERE FOR FULL ARTICLE AND LIST

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