Southern California tourists who died in Arches National Park hiking fall identified
Utah authorities have identified the two Southern California tourists who died in a fall at Arches National Park over the Thanksgiving weekend.
Toshiaki Amimoto and Etoko Amimoto of Torrance were hiking when they died Nov. 29. The couple and their son fell while traversing a steep slope in the Delicate Arch area of Arches National Park, about 230 miles southeast of Salt Lake City, the Grand County Sheriff’s Office confirmed in a statement.
The son, identified by The Associated Press as 30-year-old Ryo Amimoto, was seriously injured and was flown to an area hospital, sheriff’s officials said.
Toshiaki Amimoto, 65, was a senior vice president at investment banking firm Takenaka Partners, with offices in Los Angeles and Tokyo. He joined the firm in 2002, after stints with KPMG and Nippon Credit Bank, according to biographical information on the firm’s website.
On Monday, Yukuo Takenaka, the firm’s founder and CEO, remembered Amimoto as deeply loyal and, as a senior vice president, a key figure in the international firm. He learned of the fatal accident Friday.
“It’s a great loss to us. I’ve never had someone so loyal to the firm,” Takenaka said Monday in an interview with The Sacramento Bee.
Facebook posts of the Amimotos showed their love of the outdoors and travel. Takenaka said both were avid marathon runners. Etoko, 60, qualified for the Boston Marathon, Takenaka said.
Toshiaki “was such a well-liked person. Everybody respected him,” Takenaka said. “It’s a tough time. It’s a great loss for us.”
The Amimotos were traversing a steep slope in the area near Delicate Arch about 7:45 a.m. Temperatures were in the low 30s, the weather a mix of intermittent rain and snow, when the three lost their footing in a sandstone bowl next to Delicate Arch, Grand County Sheriff’s authorities said.
Takenaka said Ryo Amimoto tried to help his father when he also fell.
Authorities found the elder Amimotos dead at the scene, sheriff’s officials said.
Conditions at the popular park were wet and slick, Arches National Park Chief Ranger Scott Brown told the New York Daily News.
The National Park Service and the Grand County Sheriff’s Office are investigating the accident.
This story was originally published December 2, 2019 at 1:11 PM.
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