Who is Zoe McKinney's boyfriend? Lloyd Gist and Utah hiker who fell 30 feet to death 'were inseparable'
MOAB, UTAH: The boyfriend of a Utah teenager to fell 30 feet to her death while hiking at Kane Creek Canyon on Friday afternoon, February 10, has opened up about their relationship. Police said Zoe Afton McKinney, 17, was hiking the Moab Rim Trail in east Utah with her friends when she slipped and fell "off of a sheer cliff face."
Zoe's friends could not manage to get to her safely after she fell. They called 911, following which cops and other law enforcement units responded to the scene and got to Zoe with the help of harnesses and climbing gear. Police said they found her "deceased from the fall." Zoe's boyfriend, Lloyd Gist, is heartbroken after the tragedy.
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Who is Lloyd Gist?
Lloyd Gist, 18, recalled how after he moved to Moab almost two years ago, Zoe was one of the first people to speak to him. "She had the brightest smile," Gist told NBC News. "She was just the sweetest — if anyone asked her to do anything she would be jumping on it instantly."
"She complimented me on my beanie, and then the next day in class we started talking," he recalled. "Then we started hanging out almost every day. She showed me around town and introduced me to her friends, who became my friends."
Zoe was a cheerleader and was almost always present at all of Gist's football games after they began dating. According to Gist, Zoe was small in stature but "she never let her size stop her." Gist and Zoe had planned to start living together after finishing high school this summer.
"She would find a way around people if they told her no," Gist said of Zoe, who dreamed of becoming an EMT. "She loved dirt biking. She was small and her feet wouldn't touch the ground, but she could ride a large dirt bike and be perfectly fine on it." He added, "We were inseparable. If you couldn't find me, you called Zoe because I was with her."
'Zoe brought out the best in Lloyd'
Meanwhile, Gist's mother, Ellie Gist, opened up about her son's loss in a Facebook post. "My son lost “The Love of his life” tonight in a rock climbing accident in Moab. Please send out your prayers for Lloyd as he deals with the loss of his one and only Zoe. She was a beautiful, strong, loving and kind person and an exceptional human being who loved him with all her heart. She brought out the best in him. She will be deeply be missed by us and her family, but especially by Lloyd. We love you Lloyd and our hearts go out to you and her family," she wrote.
