The 32-year-old man informed his kids that the 9-mile trek was the ‘journey of a lifetime’ earlier than ascending into foul climate.
The mountains the place the incident occurred, pictured in 2019 (Photograph: Salil Bhatt by way of Getty)
Up to date November 26, 2025 11:56PM
A Utah man is dealing with a number of felony prices after allegedly mountaineering up a mountain along with his kids in foul climate final month, inflicting two of them to be hospitalized in essential situation.
On October 11, 31-year-old Micah Smith took his three kids to Utah’s Huge Cottonwood Canyon to hike to the highest of Twin Peaks. South Jordan-based Smith left the trailhead within the Broads Fork Path space at round 9 a.m. along with his 2-year-old son, 4-year-old son and 8-year-old daughter, based on ABC 4. The usual path to the summit entails a 9-mile hike with greater than 5,000 toes of acquire.
By the point the group reached the summit at 6 p.m., the climate had turned, with fog, mist, and hail enveloping the height. The Salt Lake County Sheriff’s division mentioned {that a} video deputies found on Smith’s cellphone exhibits his kids expressing issues about “freezing to loss of life,” to which he responded that they have been nearly on the high.
Smith informed investigators that he and his kids made it 600 toes down the mountain earlier than he determined that they need to search shelter. By that time, it was 8 p.m. Smith mentioned he discovered a rock he thought they might use for shelter, and tried to make use of logs and his physique to make a “windscreen” to defend the kids.
In accordance with charging paperwork, Smith mentioned that in some unspecified time in the future his 2-year-old, who had hit his head, fell unconscious, main Smith to manage CPR till the kid was respiratory on his personal. After the 4-year-old additionally appeared to lose consciousness, Smith confirmed his daughter easy methods to administer CPR, then left the kids to search for assist.
The next morning, the Salt Lake County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue Group, a Utah Division of Public Security helicopter and a Life Flight helicopter crew found the celebration in dire situation. The 8-year-old, who rescuers discovered subsequent to a boulder with “a couple of sticks stacked in opposition to it,” was in comparatively secure well being. Rescuers found the 2-year-old below the unresponsive physique of his 4-year-old brother; each have been transported to the hospital in essential situation.
Whereas the 4-year-old regained a pulse, his journey was removed from over. On the hospital, the kid’s temperature was 62.6-degrees, indicating that he was experiencing extreme hypothermia. He then skilled a stroke, underwent surgical procedure on his head, and was finally positioned on a coronary heart and lung bypass machine to maintain him alive. Authorities mentioned that medical doctors have since efficiently eliminated the kid from the machines and that his well being was bettering. In accordance with a now-deleted GoFundme web page, Smith himself suffered third-degree frostbite within the incident.
Rescuers later decided that the household had ascended greater than 3,000 toes in elevation and had traveled about 6.5 miles earlier than discovering shelter.
“What appeared like an harmless hike along with his three kids rapidly changed into a nightmare when the defendant selected to summit a mountain over the security of the children. The defendant refused to show round when their mother informed him to show round and get the kids dwelling,” prosecutors wrote in charging paperwork, noting that Smith’s spouse had texted him to recommend he abandon the hike after he despatched photos of the worsening climate. “In the course of the 24-hour ordeal, the victims expressed that they have been chilly, drained and wished to go dwelling. The defendant, who is meant to be the protector of his kids, was ill-prepared and very egocentric.”
Smith is dealing with three counts of kid torture and three counts of aggravated youngster abuse, all felonies. Discussing the fees with KSL, Salt Lake County District Legal professional Sim Gill mentioned that the trio had needed to cross tough off-trail terrain to get to the summit.
“They have been going over rocks that have been slipping. They have been having to seize onto vegetation as they hiked as they have been going up,” he mentioned. “The hike itself isn’t a simple one. And … skilled hikers from search and rescue themselves have been injured within the course of.”
Prosecutors famous that Smith had “expressed suicidal ideations” to Cottonwood Metropolis Police roughly a month earlier than the incident, and characterised his habits as “clearly spiraling.” Police additionally arrested Smith on suspicion of home violence after the hike.
On the time of the rescue, Salt Lake County Sheriff Rosa M. Rivera mentioned, “As colder climate units in, please plan forward and put together for fast-changing canyon situations. Test forecasts, pack heat layers and provides, and all the time let somebody know your route and return time. Keep protected and ready in Utah’s backcountry.”
Smith is at present being held with out bail within the Salt Lake County Jail.
