American teen falls more than 300 feet to her death while hiking in Switzerland

A teenager from America fell to her death while hiking with a friend's family in western Switzerland on Monday, the country's Valais district police announced.

The incident occurred when the American family and their daughter's friend went hiking on the "Gorges Mystérieuses" trail on Monday morning. The 16-year-old fell about 100 meters – roughly 328 feet – down an embankment.

Rescue services, including two helicopters, were deployed and the teen's body was recovered from the riverbed of Le Trient river, which is near the French border. The father of the family, who tried to rescue the teen himself, was stuck on a rock and was evacuated by rescue workers. 

The father was unharmed and it is still unclear why the teen fell to her death. The incident is being investigated by the public prosecutor's office. 

The identities of the teen and family have not been made public. CBS News has reached out to the police department for further information and is awaiting response. 

Caitlin O'Kane

Caitlin O'Kane is a New York City journalist who works on the CBS News social media team as a senior manager of content and production. She writes about a variety of topics and produces "The Uplift," CBS News' streaming show that focuses on good news.