An Arkansas father made a heartbreaking discovery over the weekend when he found his 13-year-old son dead after a 200-foot fall from a bluff at Buffalo National River, officials said.
The tragedy unfolded Saturday, Oct. 18, when the Searcy County Sheriff’s Office received a report around 11 a.m. that a 13-year-old boy had fallen from a cliff near Brewer Bluff in the park’s Middle District, according to a Facebook post from Buffalo National River.
Park staff and first responders, including search-and-rescue volunteers, fire crews and Survival Flight, responded. Members of the Harrison Fire Department rappelled about 260 feet down the bluff as park rangers approached from the river below.
The teenager, later identified as Kayleb Lynn Eddings, was found unresponsive by his father, Toby Eddings, who was among the first to reach his son, according to KHBS.
“Buffalo National River staff and I send our condolences to this young man’s family,” said park Superintendent Angela Boyers. “We also thank the responders from the local communities that showed up to assist with this incident.”
Officials said the 13-year-old had been with a friend when he lost his footing near the edge of the overlook.
He slipped from a lookout point and fell about 200 feet, the Department of the Interior said.
The National Park Service (NPS) and Searcy County Sheriff’s Office are jointly investigating the fall.
A spokesperson for the Department of the Interior, which oversees the NPS, said there are no advisories in the area and there is no danger to the public.
Officials reminded visitors that the terrain in the Buffalo National River area “can be rugged and steep,” urging people to stay a safe distance from the edge when enjoying overlooks.
Eddings was an eighth grader at Ozark Mountain School District, remembered by his family as a kind, joyful boy whose “bright, jovial personality had no rival,” according to his obituary.
“While there are many words to describe Kayleb, the most accurate and profound word is LOVE,” his family wrote in his obituary. “Kayleb was loved by everyone who had the fortune to meet him.”
He loved riding his four-wheeler, collecting Hot Wheels with his dad, hunting with his grandfather and spending time with friends. “Most of all,” his family wrote, “he loved aggravating his younger brothers and absolutely adored his youngest brother, Bean.”
“There are no words to express the deafening quiet that has filled the space where Kayleb’s voice once reverberated,” his family wrote. “While that space will never be filled, one can find comfort in the whispering of the wind, the flutter of a butterfly, the beauty of a buck and most of all, the eternal presence of God.”
A celebration of life will be held Thursday, Oct. 23, at 2:30 p.m. at the St. Joe School gymnasium in St. Joe, Arkansas.
