Park officials identify woman who drowned near St. Mary Falls
TAYLOR INMAN | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 4 months, 3 weeks AGO
Hikers enjoy St. Mary Falls on the east side of Glacier National Park on Sept. 1, 2019. (Matt Baldwin/Daily Inter Lake)
Taylor Inman covers Glacier National Park, health care and local libraries for the Daily Inter Lake, and hosts the News Now podcast. Originally from Kentucky, Taylor started her career at the award-winning public radio newsroom at Murray State University. She worked as a general assignment reporter for WKMS, where her stories aired on National Public Radio, including the show “All Things Considered.” She can be reached at 406-758-4433 or at tinman@dailyinterlake.com. | June 25, 2024 12:58 PM
Authorities on Tuesday identified the woman who drowned near St. Mary Falls on the east side of Glacier National Park as 26-year-old Gillian Tones of North Apollo, Pennsylvania.
Park officials initially said that Tones went into the water above St. Mary Falls on June 23, but clarified Tuesday that she likely slipped on wet, slick rocks and fell into Virginia Creek between the St. Mary and Virginia falls, about 200 yards above the trail bridge.
Tones was swept up by the cold, fast moving water and went over a series of smaller waterfalls before becoming pinned underwater by a log for several minutes, officials said. Nearby visitors undertook “heroic efforts” to free her from the water, authorities said.
Despite resuscitation efforts by bystanders, park rangers, ambulance personnel and A.L.E.R.T. air ambulance medics, Tones never regained consciousness. She was pronounced dead by A.L.E.R.T. personnel about 7 p.m., June 23.
Park dispatchers received multiple 911 calls routed through Glacier County dispatch at about 5:20 p.m. Park rangers were on the scene by about 5:45 p.m. and the A.L.E.R.T. helicopter landed nearby about 6:20 p.m.
Reporter Taylor Inman can be reached at 406-758-4433 or by emailing tinman@dailyinterlake.com.
