UGA student dies in hiking accident

A 23-year-old student scheduled to graduate from the University of Georgia next month died Monday while hiking a park in Connecticut with his sister, according to his obituary.

Authorities say William Cooper Gatch fell from an unmarked trail in Sleeping Giant State Park. Police said they found him in the woods where he died from his injuries.

The Connecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Protection’s Environmental Conservation Police said they are leading the investigation to determine the cause and manner of death. A preliminary investigation indicates it was an accident, according to a media release.

Gatch graduated from Southeast Bulloch High School in 2021 and was a member of the class of 2026 at UGA where he was pursuing a bachelor’s degree in agriculture.

Gatch loved to teach, fish and tinker. He “was always able to fix anything, especially a two-stroke motor,” according to the obituary. He was a student teacher at Madison County High School and would often go to his grandparents’ home to fish for largemouth bass.

“The outdoors was a place that calmed his soul and where he could find peace; a statement that maintains truth even for his final moments,” the obituary reads.

Gatch’s friend, Brie Hagan, said he had a witty sense of humor and loved to help others. “He was a true servant of the Lord, he would stop anything he was doing to help anyone at anytime,” she told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution in a Facebook message. “He never turned people down & truly never met a stranger. His character was consistent!”