A bucket list trip turns into tragedy for a Butler County man and his brother-in-law this weekend. The two were hiking in Utah, according to the Kane County Sheriff's Office when they were killed by flash flooding. Now their family is speaking out to keep their memory alive.Sixty-five-year-old Gary York from West Chester Township, Ohio and 72-year-old John Walter from Kettering, Ohio, were taking a vacation together through the beautiful canyons when the trip took an unexpected turn. "He could do anything. There wasn't anything that grandpa couldn't do," Walter's granddaughter, Taylor Kleiber, said.Walter and York were planning a vacation to Wire Pass and the Buckskin Gulch. York was celebrating his retirement. Walter's wife recently died. "He was definitely excited to go on this trip with Uncle Gary. He was excited to go to it. He was definitely talking it up," Kleiber said.When the family didn't hear from them, they had a feeling something was wrong. "We knew somewhere between Saturday afternoon, Saturday night, Sunday something was really amiss," York's son, Aaron York, said.On Sunday, the Kane County Sheriff's Office in Utah got a call that hikers in the Paria River found a man dead in the canyon. The next day, another body was recovered. "These guys were carried seven to 10 miles by the water down this canyon. That's how long and severe it was," lieutenant with the Kane County Sheriff's Office, Alan Alldredge, said.Just two months ago, Alldredge said two people were killed and one was rescued in the same canyon. "When you get that much water coming through, it comes through with a lot of force. It's very violent and there's nowhere to go," Alldredge said.It's a tragedy nobody expects and now this family is planning funerals for these men who were out enjoying life together. "He would give the shirt off of his back to anybody. If you need something you could call him or anybody just to talk to he was there. He was everybody's everything," Keliber said."He was faithful and I think that’s what my dad and John really shared just a deep mutual respect for their love for family," York said. "He was loyal, he was deep, he was present, and every time I could talk to him, I always hung up feeling refreshed and grateful."
A bucket list trip turns into tragedy for a Butler County man and his brother-in-law this weekend. The two were hiking in Utah, according to the Kane County Sheriff's Office when they were killed by flash flooding. Now their family is speaking out to keep their memory alive.
Sixty-five-year-old Gary York from West Chester Township, Ohio and 72-year-old John Walter from Kettering, Ohio, were taking a vacation together through the beautiful canyons when the trip took an unexpected turn.
"He could do anything. There wasn't anything that grandpa couldn't do," Walter's granddaughter, Taylor Kleiber, said.
Walter and York were planning a vacation to Wire Pass and the Buckskin Gulch. York was celebrating his retirement. Walter's wife recently died.
"He was definitely excited to go on this trip with Uncle Gary. He was excited to go to it. He was definitely talking it up," Kleiber said.
When the family didn't hear from them, they had a feeling something was wrong.
"We knew somewhere between Saturday afternoon, Saturday night, Sunday something was really amiss," York's son, Aaron York, said.
On Sunday, the Kane County Sheriff's Office in Utah got a call that hikers in the Paria River found a man dead in the canyon. The next day, another body was recovered.
"These guys were carried seven to 10 miles by the water down this canyon. That's how long and severe it was," lieutenant with the Kane County Sheriff's Office, Alan Alldredge, said.
Just two months ago, Alldredge said two people were killed and one was rescued in the same canyon.
"When you get that much water coming through, it comes through with a lot of force. It's very violent and there's nowhere to go," Alldredge said.
It's a tragedy nobody expects and now this family is planning funerals for these men who were out enjoying life together.
"He would give the shirt off of his back to anybody. If you need something you could call him or anybody just to talk to he was there. He was everybody's everything," Keliber said.
"He was faithful and I think that’s what my dad and John really shared just a deep mutual respect for their love for family," York said. "He was loyal, he was deep, he was present, and every time I could talk to him, I always hung up feeling refreshed and grateful."
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