Arkansas teen, Caleb Lynn Eddings, was found dead by his father after falling into the Buffalo National River

An Arkansas father made a heartbreaking discovery over the weekend when he found his 13-year-old son dead after falling 200 feet from a cliff in the Buffalo National River, officials said.

The tragedy unfolded Saturday, Oct. 18, when the Searcy County Sheriff’s Office received a report around 11 a.m. that a 13-year-old boy had fallen from a cliff near Brewer Bluff in the park’s central area, according to a Facebook post from Buffalo National River.

Park staff and first responders responded, including search and rescue volunteers, fire crews and Survival Flight. Members of the Harrison Fire Department rappelled approximately 260 feet below the bluff as park rangers approached the river below.

The teen, later identified as Kayleb Lynn Eddings, was found unresponsive by his father, Toby Eddings, who was among the first to reach his son. According to KHBS.

“Buffalo National River staff and I send our condolences to this young man’s family,” park superintendent Angela Boyers said. “We also thank the responders from the local communities who came out to assist with this incident.”

Officials said the 13-year-old was with a friend when he lost his footing near the edge of the overlook.

The Interior Ministry said he slipped from a control point and fell 200 feet.

The National Park Service (NPS) and the Searcy County Sheriff’s Office are jointly investigating the falls.

A spokesman for the Department of the Interior, which oversees the NPS, said there are no warnings in the area and there is no risk to the public.

Officials reminded visitors that the terrain in the Buffalo National River area “can be rugged and steep,” and urged people to stay a safe distance from the edge when enjoying the scenery.

Eddings was an eighth-grader in the Ozark Mountain School District, and his family remembers him as a kind, cheerful boy whose “bright, cheerful personality had no rival,” he said. His obituary.

“While there are many words to describe Caleb, the most accurate and profound word is love,” his family wrote in his obituary. “Caleb was loved by everyone who had the opportunity to meet him.”

He loved riding his four-wheel bike, collecting Hot Wheels with his father, fishing with his grandfather, and spending time with friends. “Most of all, he loved to piss off his younger siblings and deeply adored his younger brother, Ben,” his family wrote.

“There are no words to express the deafening silence that filled the place where Caleb’s voice had once echoed,” his family wrote. “Although this space will never be filled, one can find comfort in the whisper of the wind, the flutter of a butterfly, the beauty of an antelope, and most of all, the eternal presence of God.”

A Celebration of Life will be held on Thursday, October 23, at 2:30 pm in the St. Joe School Gymnasium in St. Joe, Arkansas.