A 73-year-old Kansas City, Missouri grandfather has died after a rock fell from a cliff face and crashed through the roof of the fiberglass-top Jeep he was riding in along one of the most scenic — and now suddenly perilous — stretches of road in Glacier National Park. Rex Schowengerdt was struck on July 11 while traveling the Rimrock section of Going-to-the-Sun Road, about a mile west of Logan Pass, and he died five days later on July 16 from his injuries.
According to the Flathead Beacon, Schowengerdt was on a summer family vacation when the falling rock smashed into the vehicle. The report also described his family's response after the accident.
Flathead County Sheriff and Coroner Brian Heino said Schowengerdt suffered brain herniation, intracranial hemorrhage, and traumatic brain injury, and was airlifted by helicopter to Logan Health in Kalispell for emergency treatment before he died. The coroner ruled the manner of death accidental. A GoFundMe campaign established by Schowengerdt's family states that his wife, Chris, was sitting next to him in the vehicle when the rock struck, and the family later shared that his eye and tissue donations helped restore vision for two other people.
A Rare Hazard on a Historic Highway
Fatal rockfalls along Going-to-the-Sun Road are extraordinarily uncommon. The Flathead Beacon notes prior fatal rockfalls in the park's history, including a 1996 rockfall death near Rimrock and an August 2019 incident near East Tunnel that killed a 14-year-old girl from Utah. Heavy rainfall shortly before the July 11 incident likely played a role, as park officials have noted that moisture destabilizing soil and steep rock faces often triggers rockfalls, according to SFGATE.
The 50-mile road climbs to 6,646 feet at Logan Pass along the Continental Divide and attracts millions of visitors to Glacier National Park. According to the National Park Service, Glacier National Park recorded recreation visits in 2023. The National Park Service also discusses visitation at the park. According to the National Park Service, the 50-mile route was surveyed in 1918 and work began in 1921. Completed in 1932 and cut directly into sheer mountain rock, the historic highway underwent major reconstruction several years earlier, during which engineers installed rock bolts and slope stabilization measures on high-risk cliff walls above the roadway, as reported by Unofficial Networks. The historic highway has undergone major reconstruction. The rock pierced the roof of the fiberglass-top Jeep Schowengerdt was riding in.
A Season Already Marked by Rare Tragedy
Rockfalls remain a hazard in the park, alongside wildlife incidents.
In May, 33-year-old hiker Anthony Pollio was found dead with injuries consistent with a bear encounter on the Mt. Brown Lookout Trail, and authorities were still determining the official cause, as covered in Hoodline's earlier report. A month later, Hoodline also published a related report at the time.
The back-to-back rare incidents come as Glacier's own workforce has been navigating strain of a different kind. Non-supervisory National Park Service employees across 12 Intermountain Region park units, including Glacier, voted 317 to 11 in June to unionize with the National Treasury Employees Union, citing chronic understaffing and budget constraints, according to Hoodline's report on the union vote. Rangers and emergency rescue teams responded to the incident — the same terrain that turned deadly for a Kansas City family on a summer road trip.
Schowengerdt's family has continued to raise funds through GoFundMe to help offset the costs of his emergency air transport, medical care, and funeral expenses.
