Man dies following fall from Smokies overlook
An Alabama man is dead following a fall from an overlook in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
Wesley Brandon Stedham, 48, of Warrior, Alabama, fell about 50 feet on Tuesday, Nov. 24, after stepping down a steep slope below the Chimney Tops overlook along Newfound Gap Road for a photograph.
Rangers responded to a call at 1:40 p.m. that day and together with members of the park’s technical Search and Rescue team established a rope and pulley system to reach Stedham and bring him up from the overlook. However, Stedham had suffered severe head trauma and passed away as a result of those injuries.